Impossible
by MidnightEchoes
Summary: Bella Swan has just moved to Forks to live with her dad. She's starting at her new high school, dreading the human interaction she desperately wants to do without. But she's only got one year here and can't wait to turn eighteen and leave for a sunny university far, far away. But when she meets her English teacher Mr E. Cullen, Bella's world gets turned upside down.
1. First Impressions

There were few things I enjoyed in this world and none of them were in Forks. I'd been here all weekend and so far, my heart had found nothing to attach itself to besides my new/old room. My dad Charlie was making a real effort, always asking if I needed anything or wanted to do anything. I didn't think saying "I want to go home" would go down too well though.

I wished I'd never told my mom I'd move here. I should have asked Charlie to move to Arizona instead in the interest of his health: vitamin D was a town deficiency here.

It was just so miserable and cold and wet and slushy and muddy and green. The palette here in Forks was so earthy, fresh and grey. In a way, it was quite picturesque. There was a forest out back I only had to take a few steps into, but getting muddied up would not help me like this place. It was somewhere I'd rather look at from a picture- 10,000 miles away.

I needed to stop whining. Forks was my home now. I just had to get over it. Just one year here and then I could leave for the sunniest university and never get a cold again.

I tried to keep positive for the rest of the evening. I cooked Charlie and I dinner: lasagne with a small chocolate fudge cake for dessert.

"What's the occasion?" Charlie asked, eyeing the cake suspiciously. "Your birthday is in two weeks right? It's not September seventeenth already is it?" he sounded worried.

"Nothing." I laughed. I had been so bored I'd baked. And I had to start school tomorrow so I deserved misery food. "Just wanted to test out a recipe."

"You've been here two days and I've already gained weight." Charlie smiled, his brown eyes crinkling up around the edges.

My heart warmed a little. Charlie was so lovely. I felt bad for feeling like a moody brat. "I don't know how you're not malnourished." I said, shuddering.

"Bread and beans are good for you!" Charlie protested. "And I have the diner in town."

"You know fried food isn't exactly nutritious, dad," I teased.

Charlie smiled sheepishly.

We passed the rest of the meal in comfortable silence. Living with Charlie was proving to be a lot calmer than I imagined. He wasn't in my face all the time or constantly trying to make conversation. It was one of the better things about being here: I had a lot more space. Mom and my stepdad Phil had always been so much livelier. It was like being around two kids all the time.

"Have a good sleep, Bells," Charlie yawned when we'd finished washing the dishes.

"You too."

I left the kitchen while Charlie cracked open a beer.

A nauseous sense of trepidation filled me as I stepped up to my room. School. Teenagers. Small town.

I was walking into a snake pit.

I had never been the popular type in Arizona. I was those in-between kids, not cool enough to be revered but not so down the social ladder that I got my face kicked in every day. But starting somewhere new in a small town like Forks where everybody knew your mother had left the town sheriff two years into their marriage…

I slept terribly and woke feeling venomous. The wind and rain had been hammering away all night like wild animals.

I got dressed in black jeans and a long black jumper. I should have painted my nails black last night too.

"Bells, do you want a lift?" Charlie asked as I traipsed into the kitchen.

"No, thanks." Getting a ride in the sheriff's cruiser probably wouldn't make anybody any more amiable.

"You sure?" he asked. Charlie's face kept twitching into a grin he failed to straighten out. Repeatedly.

"Why are you smiling like that?" I asked suspiciously.

"I got you an early birthday present." His face cracked into a wide grin.

"Dad, I told you I didn't want anything." Turning eighteen in a few days was hardly anything to be excited over. I was getting old. I'd have to pay my own bills soon. I'd have to get a _life. _

"I know but this is our first birthday together since… well, anyway." He got up quickly, still grinning and steered me out of the kitchen.

"Dad, where are we going?" I asked, feeling more and more worried. I hoped he hadn't thrown some kind of surprise birthday breakfast with the town. Public attention made me nauseous. People made me nauseous.

Charlie led us towards the front door. Fear had tightened in the pit of my stomach.

"Surprise!" He threw open the front door and revealed A FREAKING TRUCK.

"OH MY GOSH!" I screamed. "Dad? What the hell? Oh my gosh!"

"Do you like it?" Charlie asked nervously as I rushed to check out my new red Chevy.

"Like it? Dad, this is perfect, I freaking love it!" I squealed. I never squealed. But getting my first car was squeal-worthy.

"Well, I'm glad." He smiled awkwardly. "I got it off of Billy down at La Push. It's not the best car but it runs smooth and it'll be good for your first car."

"Thank you so much!" I said earnestly. If he were mom, I would've hugged him. But Charlie and I were mutually too awkward for such affection.

Charlie smiled. "Well, I best be off to work. See you later, Bells."

"Bye, dad!" I jumped into my truck.

I felt ten times better sitting in my _own_ car. I didn't have to walk around this stupid wet place anymore or take the bus with a bunch of strangers. My heart swelled.

I drove around the block a few times to get a feel for the car before I set off for Forks High School. It had a really loud engine but I liked it: I felt so strong behind the wheel. The truck was such a heavy piece of metal; it would do well in a crash- which I hoped I never had, of course.

I drove in to the high school, following the signs around the roads. Forks was so small I would've gotten lost and found it by accident anyway. There were loads of other cars in the parking lot; all mediocre small vehicles parents gave their kids. The only car worth gawking at was a sleek silver Volvo that looked too good to be a student's car.

I had fifteen minutes to go until time for homeroom but I needed to go to reception and sort out a few things. The euphoria of having a car seeped away as I walked up the path. I could feel the happiness being sucked out of me already.

People were definitely looking at me as I walked around school, trying to find my way. It was like they could smell the new girl. I supposed in a town as small as this, my arrival had reached every ear from the looks I was getting.

"Hey, are you new?" A bright face took over my vision.

I stepped back hastily from the lanky boy before me. He was blond and baby-faced, complete with blue eyes. It wasn't the kind of face you could comfortably be mean to. "Yeah." I replied hesitantly.

"Isabella right? Chief Swan's daughter?" The guy asked eagerly. "I'm Mike Newton."

Word had indeed gotten round. "Yeah, it's Bella." _Please stop talking to me._

He smiled wider. "Do you know where you're going?"

"Yeah, I do. Thanks!" I ran away.

"See you around!" he called after me.

"I hope not," I mumbled.

I eventually found my way to my homeroom; just as everybody was packing up to leave.

"Ah, Miss Swan," Mrs Julian, my homeroom teacher—I assumed— said. "Are you all right?" she asked kindly.

"Sorry, I got lost." I said feebly.

"Hey, Bella!"

I turned dreadfully to the sound of my name and saw Mike Newton. I groaned inwardly.

Mrs Julian gave me the run down on a few things after she shooed everybody off to their next class. My first class was English with a Mr Cullen, then trig with a Miss Vance. She mercifully took me to my next class, asking me how I'd found the town so far. I lied and said it was really great here. I didn't want to lose the only friend I'd just made.

When I walked into English, everybody else was just filing in. I hurried in but wasn't quick enough to get a seat at the back. I ended up at the end of the middle row. Heads turned in my direction as I made my way, and even after I'd sat down. Whispers of "that's the new girl, Chief Swan's daughter" flew around the room. I wanted to die inside of my shirt; I hated feeling watched.

"All right vagabonds, settle down!"

Everybody fell silent at the voice. I looked up and saw the back of the teacher's bronze head. He wore a sleek navy shirt and black suit trousers as he wrote his name on the chalkboard. Even from the back he seemed too fashionable to be in Forks. This was the town of plaid shirts and dirty jeans.

The girls around me were whispering and giggling. I wondered if Mr Cullen was actually good looking or if the stock of guys here was so bad girls had nothing else to look at. Mr Cullen did have a nice deep, velvety voice. I'd wait till he turned around to make the final judgement.

"I'm Mr Cullen and I'm very glad you've all made it to your first class on time." He said, turning around.

My heart dropped.

Mr Cullen was young. I mean like really young, way too young to be teaching. His face was sharp and square, the kind of chiselled look only models had. He was tall too with a leanness to him that hinted at a stronger body beneath the ordinary clothes. He smiled crookedly. Even from the middle here, I could tell his eyes were beautiful. The whole freaking rest of him was breathtaking.

His eyes fell on me for a moment with curiosity. I thought I saw him freeze but he moved off so quickly I was sure I was daydreaming wishfully.

I pinched myself. Well, he was real at least.

"So, we'll be studying Wuthering Heights this week," Mr Cullen announced, turning back to the board. He began writing the title down. The chalk screeched so hard against the board from the force of his writing and broke.

"Damn it," he muttered quietly. "Right, everybody get your books out while I find more chalk." Mr Cullen didn't even look at us but he spoke with such authority everybody did as they were told. He hesitated by the board for a moment, seeming not to find any chalk and walked so swiftly out of the room I thought he was a dream.

That was really fast.

A slow chatter creeped into the room as Mr Cullen didn't return for a minute and another minute and another. I kept my head down and focussed on my cover of Wuthering Heights, not wanting to make eye contact or conversation with anybody.

"Hey, are you Isabella Swan?"

I looked up to see a girl near the front with dirty blonde hair and a thin face with too much attitude looking at me. All she needed was a bubble gum blowing out of her mouth to complete the jerky cheerleader look.

"It's Bella." I said and looked back down. Everybody knew me by my stupid full name here. Who even called their kid Isabella? It was like my parents had wanted me to reach middle-age before I hit puberty.

"How come you moved here?" the girl asked loudly.

I gripped my pencil hard. I hated speaking to people who just wanted gossip.

Mercifully, Mr Cullen strode back in just then. "Sorry about that guys," he smiled, looking around.

My breath caught as his eyes fell on me for a second with that smile. Our eyes locked and in that moment I could've fooled myself into thinking he was interested in me. He was so beautiful.

Mr Cullen's eyes left mine and he turned to the rest of the class. He began talking about the book and Emily Brontë. Hot guys talking about books were my kryptonite. I could feel all the other girls in the class trying not to melt too.

But a lot of the stuff he talked about were things I'd already learned in Arizona. We'd covered this book last semester. It was one of my favourite novels too so I didn't need to take extensive notes. I could quote almost every line from memory.

Still, at least the teacher was nice to look at and listen to. I could tell from the way he talked that Mr Cullen knew more than he could say; probably keeping in mind his audience's age. He should have been a college professor in English instead.

When class ended, Mr Cullen called my name. "Bella, could I have a word please?"

I froze and looked up at him, my hands hovering over my bag.

He was sat at his desk, peering over the tops of his hand calmly. "You're not in trouble," he smiled lightly. I felt my heart stutter.

Everybody filed out of the class as I shoved the rest of my stuff into my bag and went up to the desk.

"You're new here, right?" Mr Cullen asked, surveying me.

A few feet away from him, I saw his eyes were a bright golden-honey colour. Contacts. He had to be wearing contacts. No human deserved such beautiful eyes.

"Um, yeah." I said, not trusting myself with more words. My heart was thundering against my chest.

He nodded. "Great. Have you studied Wuthering Heights before?"

I nodded.

"I thought so from the little notes I saw you take." he smiled, his pale face brightening.

I felt myself go red. "Sorry. We spent a whole semester on it last year."

"Not at all, it's good you know your stuff. Which school was this?" he asked. He hadn't moved in position since he'd called me; he seemed locked in his seat, gazing at me over the tops of his hands.

"It was in Arizona, Medley High." _You are so beautiful it's not fair._

He smiled, making my heart splutter even more. He looked like an angel. "Nice. I'll try and throw in some new things so it's not completely the same for you. Have a good day."

"Thanks, Sir. Goodbye" I hurried away.

"Goodbye, Bella," he said quietly.

It was only after two minutes of wandering around looking for my Trig class did I realise he'd called me Bella. Everybody here knew me as Isabella. Where the hell had he gotten Bella from?


	2. Surprise

The rest of my morning passed by more or less the same. Every class or corridor I went, people seem to know I was the new girl. I was getting so close to punching someone.

When the bell rang for lunch, I decided that instead of going to lunch at the cafeteria, I'd grab some food and sit in my truck. I followed the large mull of people rushing towards the cafeteria. It was a fairly large hall, a wide white space with white plastic tables and chairs. There were some visible cliques: the jocks, the nerds, the punks but aside from that, the rest of the tables seemed undefined. Large groups of guys and girls sat together and laughed and ate carelessly. Part of me wished I'd actually made a friend my age today in class so I could have sat in here. But the only person I'd officially met was Mike Newton but he and his too friendly smile were way more than I could handle right now.

I got myself an apple and a sandwich and headed out to the car lot. I wasn't sure if seniors were allowed to go out during lunch like they were in Medley High. In all honesty, I didn't see much point. All Forks had to offer were a few places to do your hardware and food groceries and a diner- and even there, I'd probably bump into Charlie.

"Lunch for one it is," I muttered to myself as I got into my truck.

Here in my creamy cab interior, I felt a bit calmer. I turned my radio on and leaned back into my seat, watching people scurry around the car park.

A flash of silver caught my eye on the left. I looked around and saw Mr Cullen smoothly riding out in the Volvo. Of course it was his car. He was gorgeous, liked books – my favourite – and had a fancy car. It wasn't fair. Some people just had it all.

Mr Cullen saw me as he slid by. He looked alarmed as our eyes caught, the muscles in his face going rigid. But before I could blink, his car zoomed away.

Woah. Did teachers hate the students here that much?

Unnerved, I cranked up the volume in my car and pulled out my textbook for my History class next. I tried my best to digest the information but it was no use: all I could think about was Mr Cullen's glare. His angry eyes kept flashing in my mind: a look of horror and contempt. Being disliked by students was one thing but your teacher?

Maybe I'd just imagined it. Maybe I reminded him of somebody he didn't like. Maybe he was crazy- yeah, crazy beautiful.

I sighed. I usually always got on with my English teachers. They were the only ones who really got my obsession for literature. But of course that wasn't the case in Forks. They were even making me take stupid Gym class which stopped being mandatory in Medley High when you became a Junior! This place was my own hell on earth, full of horrible creatures like Mike Newton.

I wanted to go home.

When the bell rang, I considered going back to Charlie's and faking an illness. I didn't want to bump into Mr Cullen's venomous glare again or face more "are you the new girl?" conversations.

Ugh. Why did I move here? Why did I leave my real home?

No sooner had I stepped out of the truck, my name was called.

"Isabella!" a high-pitched tinkering voice floated through the air like a song.

I turned and saw a small girl with a pixie-like face and short spiky black hair. She had extremely pale skin and beautiful features- just like Mr Cullen. Was there something in the water here at Forks? Jeez.

"Bella," I replied.

"I'm Alice!" she trilled, striding over to me gracefully. "What class have you got next?"

"History with uhm, hang on…" I pulled out my timetable from my coat pocket and checked. "With Miss Riaz."

"So do I!" she said cheerfully.

I found it hard not to smile back. Her enthusiasm was infectious.

"Come on, let's walk together." she said, taking a step forward.

"Okay."

We walked off together towards the main building, Alice leading the way.

"So, how are you finding it in Forks?" she asked.

"Uhm, well, it's nice. Kind of wet." I said lamely.

Alice laughed, looking fondly at me with eyes slightly darker than gold. Okay, she had to be related to Mr Cullen. "It grows on you. I only just started a few weeks before last semester finished."

"How long does it take for the new kid syndrome to wear off?" I asked.

"A month, maybe?" she grinned at me.

I groaned.

As we entered the building, more heads than usual swivelled in my direction and Alice's. I got the sense that she wasn't somebody that they approached. They all looked at her with awe mixed with fear. I hoped she wasn't the horrible-popular girl type. I hadn't seen her in the cafeteria with the jocks though so maybe they were staring because Alice was drop dead gorgeous.

"How has your day been so far?" Alice asked warmly.

"It's been okay but I feel really homesick." I admitted in a small voice.

"Aw, Bella," Alice smiled apologetically, "I suppose it'll just take a while to get used to. I miss Alaska too."

"Alaska?" I repeated in surprise. "You moved all the way from there?"

Alice smiled. "Yes. I miss the snow but it's all right, Forks gets some pretty decent snow coverage too."

I groaned. "I hate the snow."

She laughed. "Hey, so have you met my brother Edward yet?"

"Do you mean the English teacher, Mr Cullen?" The Mr E. Cullen on my timetable made sense now. Edward. How romantic a name was that? He belonged in an Austen novel.

Alice grinned. "Yes, Mr Cullen, oops. I forget that's what everybody knows him as."

"So you are related. I thought you guys looked similar."

"Yes, he's only twenty five. Fresh out of college and teaching. This is his first job."

"Wow, that's pretty cool." He still seemed too young to be twenty-five. Maybe he just had really good skin. I peeked a sideways glance at Alice and thought she seemed too perfect to be seventeen/eighteen too. She had this air around her like her brother had, like they were too mature for their surroundings, meant for another time and place.

"Do you have any siblings?" she asked chirpily.

"No, it's just me."

"Come on, get in kids!" A woman's voice – Mrs Riaz I suspected –boomed as we neared the History class.

Alice and I filed dutifully into the class. She moved so fast and grabbed a seat at the back. Something about her kept the table next to her clear which I took gratefully. Heads kept turning in our direction until Mrs Riaz began the class.

History passed by in a boring blur. I had Gym next with Alice too so we walked over together. It was pretty great not being lost, I had to admit. She made up most of the conversation, telling me all about herself:  
>She was one of three siblings, kids to the town's Doctor Carlisle Cullen and his wife Esme. They were: Emmet, Edward and her. Emmet was in the college at Alaska studying with his fiancé Rosalie.<p>

"Have you got a boyfriend?" she asked cheerfully as we jogged around the Gym hall to warm up.

I laughed. "No, I don't. I'm too awkward for that."

Alice scoffed. "You've never had a boyfriend?"

"Does getting married to my sandbox partner in first grade count?"

"Depends," she smiled wryly, "how long were you together?"

"About thirty minutes. He left me for another girl." I pretended to look upset.

Alice laughed; the sound was like a peal of tinkering bells. Everything about her was musical and graceful; even as we jogged now, she seemed to be gliding.

"Do you want to grab a coffee or come hang out at mine?" Alice asked after we'd showered and changed.

I stared at her in surprise. We'd only hung out for two hours. Did that qualify us for coffee dates now? "Uhm, maybe tomorrow?" I offered. I kind of just wanted to go home and call my mom to cry.

"Sure," she smiled easily.

We walked out of the changing room together and went off to the car lot. My stomach dropped as I saw the Volvo waiting at the front of the lot.

"Do you need a ride?" Alice offered graciously.

This girl was so sociable it was unnerving. "My ride's right there," I nodded towards my beastly truck, easily the biggest and oldest thing in the lot.

Alice grinned. "Sweet ride. Well, see you tomorrow!" she gave me a quick wave and sauntered off towards the Volvo.

I had to walk in front of their car to get to mine. I tried to keep my head down and walk fast but I couldn't help peeking sideways quickly.

My body flooded with cold as I saw Mr Cullen and Alice glaring at each other. Alice's lips were moving so fast I almost couldn't tell she was speaking. Mr Cullen suddenly looked up and saw me. His eyes flew open in surprise and then narrowed – into anger? Disgust? Loathing? God. Why did he hate seeing me so much?

I looked away quickly and hurried off towards my truck. Stupid Cullen. Stupid English teachers. Stupid cute guys with stupid cute glares.

As I started my truck, the Cullens' car sped past like the driver was unequivocally angry.

Splat. Splat. Splat.

"Ugh!" I slapped my wheel as rain began to pour down from the heavens. I looked up angrily at the heavy grey skies. Talk about pathetic fallacy.

Why was Mr Cullen so angry with me? I thought teachers were meant to make students feel safe, not like they'd done something wrong by being born!

"Damn it!" I cursed. I was meant to check in at the reception at the end of the day. I stared out into the lot, heavy with rain. Puddles had already formed. People ran around the school, hurrying to get home or into their cars. The whole world was a flurry while I was stuck inside my truck, wondering why I felt so sick to my stomach about my English teacher hating me.

Instead of going to the office, I drove out of the school with my hands clasped tight around the wheel. I waited till I got back to Charlie's to let my feelings go.

I ran up to my room and screamed into my pillow, finally succumbing to tears.

I didn't realise how much time had passed as I lay on my bed until Charlie came knocking.

"Bells, you home?" he asked worriedly.

"Huh?" I called thickly.

My door creaked open. "Oh, you're home." Charlie said with relief. "Thank God. I got worried when I didn't hear anybody in the house."

Cop problems. I sighed and looked up at him through bleary eyes. "Sorry. I forgot to make dinner."

Charlie waved my apology away. "It's fine. I'll order us pizza."

I looked at him silently, still lying on my side.

Charlie mussed his dark hair. "So, how was school, Bella? Did you make any friends?"

I closed my eyes momentarily before I shoved myself up into a sitting position. "Yeah, it was fine. I made a friend called Alice Cullen."

Charlie's face split into a smile. "That's great! The Cullens' are a great family, really great. Doctor Cullen has worked so many miracles at Forks Hospital, I tell ya."

I smiled feebly. "Yeah, she's a lovely girl."

"Well, I guess you're tired from your first day." Charlie said awkwardly, looking around my room. "I'll let you rest. I'll bring you up some pizza when it comes."

"No, you don't have to do that." I protested.

"It's fine, let your old man bring you some food up. I never got to do this stuff when you were a kid, not all the time anyway." His pale cheeks went red. Information overload.

"Dad," I said sadly.

"Sorry, I'm just real happy you're here, Bella." He looked at my ceiling as he said this.

"Thanks," I said to my shoes.

"All right. See you in a bit." He pulled the white door shut behind him.

I fell back on to my bed and stared up at my green ceiling. As far as first days at school went, this hadn't been too terrible. I decided that Mr Cullen was just going through menopause and that I would ignore his glares. He'd seemed nice enough when we'd spoken at the end of class. Maybe he just had something in his eye when he saw me in the lot. Maybe there was a crack in his windshield right where I fell into his line of sight. Maybe, maybe, maybe.

The next morning, I had ice in my stomach all the way to school. It sloshed around me uncomfortably as I sat through homeroom with Mike chattering incessantly away in my ear. I mm'd and ahh'd whenever it got silent, not really paying attention to his stupid babble.

I didn't want to go to English. What if Mr Cullen glared at me again?

But I didn't have to worry. when we got into class, it wasn't Mr Cullen who greeted us.

"Hey everyone!" A bubbly young woman called as we sat down. "I'm Miss Lance, I'll be subbing for you guys today. I'm afraid Mr Cullen isn't feeling well."

Huh. Well, at least I got to avoid his glare.

But part of me couldn't shake off the sense that I had something to do with his absence.

_Don't be stupid,_ I scolded myself, _how could you- a lame student- have anything to do with his absence? He doesn't even know you._

_He knew to call me Bella though._

I wrestled with these thoughts all through to lunch. I was about to head for my truck again when Alice bounded through the cafeteria doors. She was dressed in a tight maroon skater dress and black lacy tights that made her pale legs look even more stunning. Heads swiveled.

"Hey, Bella!" She sang, sliding up to me. "Want to sit together?"

"I was going to slum in my truck, actually. You can come with me?" I could feel the heat of everybody's gaze on Alice andme- mostly Alice.

"Sure!" she trilled.

"Bella!"

I sighed and turned grumpily towards the deep call of my name. It was probably Mike or one of his friends.

"Jacob?" I gasped.

Jacob Black, the son of my dad's best friend Billy, stood before me. He was my height, just a bit over five-four and had jet black hair that fell around his bronze face and friendly smile. Beneath his well-fitted jumper, muscles bulged. Wow. Someone had aged well.

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><p><em>AN:<br>Thanks so much for the reviews/favs/follows so far guys and t__hanks so much for reading. Love! xx_


	3. Flickers

_A/N: Hey guys, just a note to say I'm still kind of world building atm so things are just beginning to happen. There will be some more action in the next chapter as Bella tries to figure out the elusive Mr Cullen so bear with me! I also promise love triangles._

_Thanks for reading! _

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><p>"Jacob, you've grown!" I gaped at him. "What are you doing here?"<p>

Jacob laughed; the sound was light and fun. It made me smile more. "I haven't seen you in like ten years and I don't even get a how are you?"

"Sorry," I said sheepishly. "How are you doing? How's Billy and your sisters? Gosh, it's so weird seeing you after all this time!" But it was so great to see somebody I actually knew around here.

"I'm good, how are you?" he asked sincerely. "I heard you'd moved back. Dad and I were going to come visit this weekend. We thought we'd wait till you'd settled in a bit."

I pulled a face. "You should've just come! There's not a lot to get settled into."

His black eyes were warm and earnest as he replied. "If I had just moved from Arizona, I don't know that I'd want much company just yet. What happened? Did you become allergic to the sun or something? You used to hate holidaying down here."

I was surprised that Jacob even remembered my hatred for Forks. "Well, I'm off to college next year so I thought spending some time with Charlie was overdue before I left." That was half the reason.

Jacob smiled. "He's so happy you're here. Ever since you told him, it was all he could talk to Billy about—well, aside from football."

I felt my cheeks warm. Charlie's enthusiasm had been something I was worried about before I'd moved: I wasn't sure if I was just forcing myself into his house or whether I was actually welcome. He'd been on his own so many years now, I thought having me around now would be a problem. "He's a great dad," I said. "Really great. He bought me a truck as a homecoming present."

Jacob laughed. "Yeah, that was my dad's!"

My eyes bulged. "No way!"

"Yeah, I rebuilt the engine and gave the beast a proper service so she's practically new." He said in a way that seemed to be for my reassurance.

"Is that your way of saying you never want her back?" I decoded.

Jacob laughed. "Well, not really but basically yeah."

I chuckled. "Don't worry, she's running great. I reckon we'll be together for a long time."

He smiled. "Well, I'm gonna go before I get caught for trespassing. I just came to see if I could get a part for my new car from a friend here."

"See you around, Jacob."

"Bye, Bella!" He waved and turned away, speeding off towards the exit.

Only when Jacob had disappeared did I remember what I was doing in the cafeteria. I turned and jumped at the sight of Alice standing before me with a tray of food.

"I got us lunch while you guys were talking." Alice smiled brilliantly, her pearly white teeth flashing through her scarlet lips.

A shiver went down my spine. I drew my jacket tighter around me. "Sorry, I haven't seen Jacob in years."

"Don't apologise, it's always fun to see a familiar face." Alice was just too easy to like. "Shall we go to your truck?"

"Actually, why don't we eat here?" I suggested. "It's so cold outside."

"Sure!" Alice said easily. "Where do you want to sit?"

We scoped the hall for a minute, trying to find a place to sit.

"There's a table at the back!" Alice trilled. "Come on,"

I followed Alice towards an empty table for four near the window.

"How has your day been so far?" Alice asked me.

"I'm not as lost as I was yesterday, so it's not as bad." I took out my purse from my rucksack. "How much do I owe you?"

Alice looked at me with offended eyes. "Don't be stupid, put your purse away."

"Alice," I said firmly, "there's at least ten bucks of food there."

She'd gotten a helping of fries, salad, a chicken sandwich, a banana and a slice of cheesecake.

"You can get the food tomorrow then." She said. "Help yourself." She slid the tray towards me.

I took a few fries and watched as Alice picked at one. My eyes swept over her frame: she was petite in every sense; more bone than muscle and yet there was a slenderness to her that defied the harshness of being too thin. She was kind of perfect.

I stared down at my own thighs, easily twice the size of hers and picked up some more fries. Might as well enjoy my youthful metabolism while I could.

"So how was your day?" I asked.

Alice-whose golden eyes had been drifting around the lunch hall-looked back at me. "It's been all right. Edward wasn't feeling so great so I got to drive in."

A swarm of butterflies trembled in my stomach at Mr Cullen's name. "In the Volvo?"

Alice nodded, smiling. "It's a bit tame but it goes fast enough."

"Ha, you should try driving my truck."

Alice's nose wrinkled, her eyes smiling. "I prefer vehicles that get me home in _this_ century."

"Hey!" I protested, laughing. "My truck is a senior citizen of this town, I'll have you know. She deserves some respect."

"Sorry, ma'am," Alice grinned.

We ate silently for a few moments—well, I ate. Alice kept picking at her food, putting small bites into her mouth and chewing so quickly I wondered if there were anything in her mouth at all.

"So how come Mr Cullen is sick?" I asked after a while. "He seemed okay yesterday."

"He got some food poisoning," Alice replied. Her golden eyes bored into mine as she spoke. "That's why I'm not eating so much. I feel kind of gross thinking about him being so sick. He was a wreck last night. Even this morning, he still seemed terrible."

"That sounds awful." I grimaced. "Hopefully he'll recover soon."

"Mm, I'm sure he will." Alice surveyed me for a moment, looking at me thoughtfully before she looked away. I got the sense there was something on her mind, something I wasn't able to know. It felt like it was to do with me from the way she'd looked at me: curiously, almost like she was waiting for me to say something.

That was stupid though. I'd known her and Mr Cullen all of like twenty-four hours.

"So, that Jacob guy seemed cute." Alice said, waggling her perfectly arched black eyebrows at me.

I stared at her incredulously. "Please don't. We used to make mud pies together when we were little."

"Childhood sweethearts, how romantic!" Alice gushed.

I rolled my eyes and threw a fry at her.

Alice caught the fry in a swift movement, tossing it back onto the tray.

"Wow, nice." I said, awed.

Alice shrugged and grinned. "So, Jacob."

"Sooo not gonna happen. Ever."

Alice smiled wickedly. "I saw that look on your face when you saw his muscles."

"Hey, I can appreciate the sights." I said. "What about you, have you met anyone here?"

Alice shook her head. "No, but I have somebody already."

"Ooh, does he go here?"

"He used to; he just graduated out of high school and goes to the college in Seattle. His name is Jasper." As Alice said his name, a soft glow took over her face: the mark of love. It was both adorable and so cheesy.

"Is it like a long distance thing?" I asked.

Alice shook her head, laughing. "No, we live together."

"Really?" Already? I didn't say.

"Yeah, Jasper was adopted by my parents a long time ago."

"Ohhh, so that's why you live together." I realised. "How long have you guys been dating?"

"Since he moved in." she grinned.

"Love at first sight?" I teased.

Alice laughed. "Yes. You have no idea,"

I felt pleased Alice was okay to share something like that with me. Even if I did admit her dating her foster brother was _kind_ of strange, really it wasn't. They weren't related.

"Are you still up for coffee after school?" Alice asked.

"I cancelled all my plans with the President just for you."

Alice laughed and rolled her beautiful eyes. I felt a pang of jealousy at how effortlessly stunning she was. She didn't even wear any detectable make up aside from her red lips. Her clothes and walk all screamed classy couture—which was probably why she wasn't bothered about the money for the food, not that she ate much of it. Everything about the two Cullens I'd met suggested they were very well off.

When lunch was over, Alice and I headed off to our classes together. Today did seem a lot smoother and not having Mr Cullen glare at me helped a lot. I still couldn't shake off the feeling that I'd upset him somehow yesterday.

If I had, Alice didn't mention it at all so I assumed I was just being overly narcissus. After school, we drove in our separate cars down to Betsy's, a cute little coffee shop off the centre of town. Hanging out with Alice Cullen made me feel like I was with someone from out of this world. She was so light and bubbly, never ran out of things to say. I told her about some of my life back in Phoenix and she told me about life in Alaska. Her family moved around a lot; before that they'd been in Maine, Minnesota and even London for a time where her father was originally from. They'd travelled all around Europe, been to South America and Egypt too. Listening to Alice's experiences around the country made me realise how lame my holidays with Charlie in Los Angeles had been. It was almost hard to believe someone my age had been to so many places in such a short lifetime.

I made it a new goal there and then that I'd see more of the world after I graduated. Who knew what wonders lay out there in the unknown?

And so that was how the rest of my first week went. I stopped getting lost around campus and hung out with Alice for lunch every day. I also made a new friend called Angela Weber who was in my English—still no sign of Mr Cullen—and History class. She was a shy, quiet girl with pretty green eyes and soft brown curls. If we were five, I might have asked her if I could play with her hair.

By the end of the week, I'd gotten used to my routine at Forks High School. I came back home, cooked dinner for me and Charlie, did some homework and went to sleep to start again the next day. I could tell it was going to be a simple, quiet life here. I had no excuse not to get good grades.

When Monday came around, I went to school feeling calm and comfortable –exactly the opposite of how I'd felt last week.

After Homeroom, I traipsed off to English and filed in with the rest of my classmates. I took my seat uniformly and pulled out my books and pen from my bag, setting them on my desk. It was only then did I look to the front of the class, expecting to see Miss Lance.

My stomach flooded with fear as I saw not Miss Lance but Mr Cullen. And he was staring right at me.

He smiled at me.

I felt my heart lurch uncomfortably. I smiled or grimaced back – my lips made some kind of movement and dropped my gaze to my books.

My heart was thudding hard against my chest. I shook out my hair before me and peeked through my strands.

Mr Cullen's nose was wrinkled for a moment but he was looking around the class, smiling at everybody else.

"Morning, everybody!" Mr Cullen's velvety voice filled the air, causing silence to descend into the room.

I straightened my head and looked at him.

"Sorry for being away last week, I had a nasty case of food poisoning." He stood up from his desk. "So, what did you guys get up to with Miss Lance?"

The prudish girl who'd tried to demand answers from me – Lauren Mallroy – answered Mr Cullen. While twirling her dirty blonde hair.

I rolled my eyes.

"Well, we looked at the setting in Wuthering Heights and how it tells us about the story," Lauren said in an overly sugary voice.

Mr Cullen's face was blank of expression as he listened to her, strictly professional. I wonder how many students' hearts he broke on an hourly basis. "And what does it tell you about the story?" he asked.

"Uh, well," Lauren hesitated, "it tells us that it's going to be a dark story."

I bit back a laugh. Ten points to captain obvious.

Mr Cullen nodded and smiled kindly. "We definitely find a sense of foreboding in the book from the way the landscape is described. Can anybody tell me why this is significant in the book?"

Another girl – Jessica Stanley- shot her hand up. "It's to do with like pathetic fallacy, right? The setting matches the bleakness of the story."

Mr Cullen nodded. "Yes. But what else does the way the houses are described signify?" he looked around the class expectantly.

Nobody raised their hand.

"Any takers?" Mr Cullen grinned devilishly at us.

I felt the oestrogen levels in the room rise. This man was too good looking to be a teacher. How were we meant to focus?

"Anybody? No one at all? Don't make me pick someone…" he looked around a few times but nobody volunteered. "Bella, would you like to explain?"

I froze. All eyes fell on me. I stared back at Mr Cullen, aghast.

He smiled at me, his angelic face prompting me to speak.

"Well," I looked away from his beautiful face and stared at the chalkboard instead. "The setting around Wuthering Heights all connotes isolation with towns and houses miles and miles away which speaks of the isolative relationship of Cathy and Heathcliff. They stand apart from society; they're not like the normal mould. They're the wild, overgrown hedges in the landscape like it shows on this cover; they aren't as easily tamed."

"Very well put, Bella." Mr Cullen said, sounding impressed.

I looked back at him, my cheeks red from the public speech. I felt them go even redder from his praise… and the way he said my name. It sounded so lyrical in his deep, smooth voice.

He looked away from, a tight smile on his face. "And how does the setting break Cathy and Heathcliff apart?"

Nobody answered.

"Any takers?" Mr Cullen looked around expectantly.

Lauren raised her hand.

Mr Cullen nodded at her.

"So like Heathcliff has to work in the stables when Mr Earnshaw dies and his son takes over."

Mr Cullen nodded. "Earnshaw does force Heathcliff to work when his father dies, yes. What else guys?"

The class was dead silent.

My hand slowly raised itself.

"Bella," Mr Cullen nodded at me, his face brisk and professional.

"Well, Heathcliff is always seen as an outcast, a Gypsy boy or the illegitimate lovechild of Cathy's dad so he's never really accepted by the society around him. The social settings in the book then work to keep Cathy and Heathcliff apart but it doesn't succeed until Cathy gives in and becomes like the middle or respectable class of society her family are from."

"And what does this say about social conventions?"

"For Cathy and Heathcliff, conforming to convention is what tears them apart and basically breaks their minds. Cathy can't function without Heathcliff; Heathcliff can't function without her. But it's only in conforming to society's ideals of successful men and women can they get the tools to survive. But there's such a difference between physical, material survival and mental, emotional survival."

"Absolutely." Mr Cullen agreed fervently. "The limits of social convention on human beings can unhinge the mind when one has to deny what they truly are."

"Yeah, I guess that's why Heathcliff becomes such a heartless man after Cathy dies. He lets the full force of all that he really was out; no more restraints."

"Precisely." Mr Cullen smiled at me, a sense of surprise in his face. "Thank you very much for your answers, Bella. I'm glad somebody is awake." He flashed a grin that made my stomach swoop and turned around towards the board.

"All right guys, open up your copies of the text to chapter twenty." He called over his shoulder.

I got a few impressed looks from some of my peers and dirty glares from Lauren and Jessica. I shook out my hair over my face again as I smiled to myself. Mr Cullen liked my answers. English was the one subject I was genuinely good at: I was glad that much hadn't changed in coming to Forks.

The rest of the lesson passed on the importance of aesthetics to the book. I didn't think I'd ever get used to how gorgeous Mr Cullen was. Him talking about books only made me swoon more. I'd practically forgotten his glares from all the smiles he kept giving.

He looked a lot better than last week, too (if it were even possible for perfection to be more perfect). His pale skin seemed less chalky and healthier; there was a spring in his step and he spoke with more ease and seemed a lot more comfortable. Maybe I'd just imagined the glares.

When the bell rang, I got up and gathered all my things together like everybody else. Mr Cullen bid us all goodbye as he sat at his desk. And same as last week, he called my name. "Bella?"

I turned in surprise towards him.

"May I have a quick word?" he asked politely.

I nodded and treaded over to his desk.

Mr Cullen waited until everybody had left.

"Your answers today showed a really deep knowledge of the book today." He said, surveying me with impossibly gold eyes.

"It's a favourite," I said sheepishly.

"It's one of mine, too." He smiled.

My stomach did a somersault.

"I was wondering, seeing as you've studied the text before, would you like to study a different book?"

"I could do that?" I asked in disbelief.

"Sure, if you'd like to. What do you think?" he asked.

It was pretty boring studying something I'd already done before.

"How would it work out in class though?" I asked shyly.

"Well, you can come to first period and do your own work at the back which I'll give you. And we can arrange an extra class at the end of the day so I can go through everything with you properly."

"Extra class?" I repeated.

Mr Cullen grinned. "Yes, but as there's only one of you I imagine it won't be for more than half an hour, provided you do all the work in this class."

"It would be good to study something new." I admitted. "At least I won't feel like I'm cheating when I'm answering either."

"No, it's not cheating," Mr Cullen chuckled. The sound was deep and uplifting. It made me want to laugh too. "If you have knowledge that others don't, it's only right that you share it."

I smiled a little. "How long will the extra class be for?"

"Just a couple of weeks. We'll be moving on to _Pride and Prejudice _afterwards."

"Thankfully, I haven't studied that."

Mr Cullen grinned, flashing his brilliant white teeth.

I got the sense I should've shivered, like when Alice's teeth were flashed but something about his smile made my knees weaken instead. God. _Get a grip, Bella, he's your English teacher!_

"Great, well for the next couple of weeks you'll be studying _Dracula _by Bram Stoker."

"I haven't read that either."

Mr Cullen smiled again. "Do you have a copy of the book?"

I rummaged through my home stock mentally. "Uhmm, no. I'll pick one up tonight from the library."

"The library is very poorly stocked." Mr Cullen said in a disappointed voice. "You might have to drive out to Port Angeles for a good bookstore to get it. But you can borrow my copy for this week."

"No, that's okay, I'll just drive out!" I protested as he sprung from his chair and went to his bookshelf in the corner.

"No, it's fine. I've got another copy at home anyway." Mr Cullen said dismissively, walking back with the book in hand. "Here you go."

"Thank you," I said in more of an 'I'm sorry' voice as I took the old book from his pale white hand. I was definitely going to buy some Vitamin D supplements this week.

"Well, I probably should let you get to class before you get in trouble." Mr Cullen said.

Crap. I'd forgotten I'd had a class. "Yeah, I should go. Thanks again. Bye!"

"Goodbye, Bella," he said quietly, softly even.

My heart thumped erratically as I left his classroom, marvelling at my fortune. My handsome English teacher liked me. We'd be having extra classes together. I tried not to let this make me happy but I could not stop smiling for the rest of the day.

It was just a lame crush, I told myself. Everybody in the school practically fancied Mr Cullen. I was not being irrational.

And yet, some niggling voice in the back of my mind kept whispering this was not normal. _What teacher put on an extra class for one student? _

_A dedicated one? _

_Yeah, right. _

There was no way he was doing this for the reasons I wanted. I bet he had a girlfriend anyway. There was no way a man as handsome as that would look twice my way.

And yet he knew to call me Bella.


	4. Cravings

I spent the rest of my evening reading Mr Cullen's book. There was something thrilling about having hold of it: I felt like I'd been given exclusive access to something. But those feelings quickly disappeared as I read through the novel. The story of Dracula the Vampire was so chilling: his cold-blooded murders; the kidnappings; the gore. Everything about the vampire made me grimace. The prose was beautiful though and the pages were old and musty; my favourite kind of smell in books.

Unfortunately, no secret love note fell out from the pages. But hey, a girl could dream.

And dream I did. Only it felt so real that when I woke up, I was sweating through my pyjamas.

Mr Cullen was Dracula. He was a vampire. Or he had been in my dream.

I had been running through the dark school corridors as he chased me, fangs sparkling through his bloodied lips. His eyes had been glowing red.

I got out of bed and switched my desk lamp on and made sure my windows were shut. Nothing moved outside tonight, not even the wind. All was calm and quiet, deadly still. There were no monsters going bump in the night.

I sank back into bed and huddled beneath my purple covers. Mr Cullen was not a vampire. He was too beautiful and kind to be any kind of monster.

I made a new resolution to not go near any horror stories before I slept, ever again- at least, not without my mom.

I wished she were here now. If we'd been living together, I could've called her and asked her to sleep with me for the night. I couldn't imagine asking Charlie to sit with me, let alone give me a hug when it wasn't an occasion or anything monumental.

I drifted back to sleep, drenched in the knowledge of how utterly alone I was here.

Even though it had all just been a bad dream, a heavy sense of despair pervaded through my day. Charlie didn't seem to notice which made me feel even worse. It was strange how little my dad and I really knew of each other and yet we shared such a pivotal bond.

Mike garbled away in my ear, talking about some Halloween dance coming up. I barely spoke and laid my head down on the table to rest. He got the message and went to go annoy somebody else. I wondered if he was just trying to talk my ears off because he liked me or he just liked to talk. The guys at this school were so weird. At least back in Phoenix nobody paid me any attention.

When the bell rang for class, a fearful sense of dread filled my body. I tried to shake my dream out of my mind and went to class. This was the problem with being a literature lover: your imagination knew no bounds. Anything was possible, even red eyes.

But when I got to class and saw Mr Cullen, all the anxiety disappeared from my body. He saw me and smiled, sending my heartbeat spiralling and my spirit soaring. Was it weird my teacher had _this_ much of an effect on me?

From the drools on all the other girls' faces, I guessed not. Mr Cullen was an exception anyway. He was just too much.

I took my seat and got my stuff out. My body bristled as Mr Cullen appeared at my desk. He dropped a file of papers onto my desk.

I looked up.

"Answer as best you can. We'll go over them after school." Mr Cullen's voice was quiet and smooth, like a secret. Half his mouth turned up in a crooked smile that made my breath stop.

And then he was gone, walking back up the aisle.

That man had the speed of light. I could barely arrange my face into a normal expression before he was at the front of the class, talking about _Wuthering Heights. _

* * *

><p><strong>Edward's POV<strong>

There were many joys of being a teacher, such as the extensive holidays and relatively meagre work hours. But there were many pains also, mainly to do with narcissus, whinging children who couldn't read a textbook. It did not help that I could hear all their thoughts too.

For the most part, I tried not to listen. It was like always having a radio on in my mind as I went about my work day. There were particular voices I tried to ignore, like that of my female students and colleagues and my family members whose privacy I tried to respect as best I could.

Only very rarely did I try to pry and this exception was completely justified: I could not hear Bella Swan's thoughts.

The humdrum of my student's thoughts went on around me as they tried to write a page on architectural symbolism. I could hear the scratching of hundreds of pens through the school corridors, smell the tedious odour of cafeteria food being cooked away; even hear the scamper of small animal feet out by the woods lining the school field.

But all my Vampiric strength was useless when it came to Bella Swan. I couldn't hear a single thought going through her mind.

I sat at my desk and watched her work over the Dracula paper. Her soft brown hair fell around her thin face, her pink mouth screwed up in concentration. I could hear the steady beat of her heart echoing through her body; I could count all the small breaths she was taking. I could smell her blood; a scent more potent and captivating then anything I'd ever experienced.

The girl was beautiful, that much was a given. I didn't need to be able to hear the pathetic thoughts of her male peers- particularly that Mike Newton boy- to know the attraction she held for them.

I felt it a million times more. I felt it in every fibre of my body. The desire for her blood sang through my bones. It was all I could think about from the moment she stepped into my classroom.

I could have killed her then. I made enough plans during that first class with her. I could have lured her to my car at lunch and driven her to her death; I could have stolen her away into the forest. I could have taken her blood for my own there and then and snapped the rest of these twenty five children's necks in mere seconds.

But the life my family and I had built for ourselves would have been destroyed. We'd just moved here. And I owed my parents more than that.

_Why is Mr Cullen staring at Bella? _The snide voice of Lauren Mallroy cut through the humdrum.

My eyes flashed to her irritated face instantly.

Lauren's pale green eyes froze. Blood pooled into her cheeks. She dropped her gaze back to her paper.

_Ugh. Why is he so hot? If I had my way with him…_

I tuned out Lauren's insipid thoughts and looked around the classroom. No matter how inviting the smell of her blood was, I'd rather have starved to death than drink the blood of a vindictive girl like her. She'd probably get a kick out of it, too.

I sighed and looked over my lesson plan. Why I had picked teaching at high school was really beyond me. I'd lectured various subjects at colleges around the world over the past century and thought high school would make a nice, new experience. I'd forgotten how hormonal teenagers were. At least in colleges, I didn't have to spend too much time with my students. Their temporal thoughts were easier to bear.

But this daily routine with the same children over and over was beginning to wear on me – and I had only been teaching for three days.

I should have left last week and never returned. I should have stayed in Alaska and pursued another degree with Rosalie and Emmet. I should have stayed away from Bella Swan.

I let my eyes drift back to her momentarily. Why on earth couldn't I hear her thoughts?

It took me a while to be able to focus specifically and seek out my family's voices in a gathering like school. I could hear Alice sighing away in her Biology class, wondering what to get Jasper for their anniversary. At the back of her mind was worry for me too, something she kept trying to downplay for she knew I'd be listening. Why my sister was worried, I had no idea. She hadn't seen anything -yet. Her prophetic visions had gone into haywire the day Bella walked into my classroom. They'd been flowing in multiple directions all week until I came home, vowing not to let a seventeen year old girl run me out of my town.

I tried to focus in on Bella now. Maybe if she were concentrating on something, I'd be able to hear her thoughts. The world around her disappeared as I watched her, trying to listen beyond her heartbeat and breaths. But there was nothing but blank silence from her.

I looked away before Lauren garnered another reason to hate Bella (who had taken all of the boys attention off of her unknowingly) and checked my watch. There were five more lessons I had to get through before my extra class with Bella. Maybe if we were alone together for a long enough time, I'd be able to get some kind of reading off her. There was no logical reason why I couldn't hear her thoughts. It didn't make sense. _She _didn't make sense.

_Edward,_ Alice mentally called.

"Hmm," I said quietly, pretending to read through my papers.

_How is the class going?_

I tapped my finger twice on my desk. We'd worked out a Morse code last week: even taps were positive, odds were the converse.

_Good. How's your thirst? Does it hurt much?_

The smell of Bella Swan was a fire down my throat. The ache flowed through every part of me. I swallowed back the venom that pooled in my mouth as my body itched for me to get my prey.

Bella was so enchanting it hurt.

I tapped four times.

I could practically hear Alice's eyes rolling. _Well, as long as you don't pounce in the middle of class, it's fine. _I saw her mind roaming through her visions, trying to detect any possible mishaps. The coast was clear. Mostly.

_I really don't think you should do this extra class thing. _Alice griped. She showed me her vision: Bella and I were sat at my desk, working through her answers. I was staring at her throat. She kept nervously looking between her paper and me.

But that was all.

"I'll be fine," I said so quietly and quickly that not even the kids in the front row heard.

_You should let me sit in still. _She insisted.

"No." I sprung up from my seat. "All right guys, have you all finished?"

Twenty six pairs of uncertain eyes looked up at me. I tried not to focus on the chocolate brown eyes that belonged to Bella. Everything about her made me want to taste—

"I'm going to take that as a yes. Now, who wants to share?"

Loud mental protests went on. Bella dropped her eyes back to her work.

I spent the next half hour illuminating my students about the wonders of symbolism and the difficulty of trying to place the novel in a certain genre. Part of me wished I hadn't given Bella a different assignment: I wanted to hear more on her thoughts about the novel. Did she think Heathcliff a monster for his wild obsession with ruining the Linton's life? Did she find anything redeemable about the barbaric man who spread misery and hatred like wildfire? Did she believe in good and evil or were the lines not so clear cut for her? Could one be both a monster and a human?

"Okay, see you all tomorrow!" I said as the bell rang.

I turned away from my class and went to my desk. I kept my head down in my papers and watched Bella leave through her classmates' minds. I had to keep a distance: she'd seem so startled when I'd smiled at her earlier. Every time she came near me, her heart beats shot up. It was the usual response for humans; this flight or fight instinct that sent their heart rates flying. But it did not seem to lessen with Bella; her anxiety only seemed to increase the more I came near her.

Well, this extra class would be interesting to say the least.

I really should not have done that. I should have stayed away.

But it was only for two weeks. If we covered enough this week, I could just set her essay work for the next.

Damn it. This was such a stupid idea.

Bella threw me a few covert glances as she left. She looked confused. I looked up, desperate to know what she was thinking.

Bella seemed to freeze; her heart stuttered.

I smiled and looked away. I could not hear a damned thing from her mind.

She left, hear heartbeats still pulsing erratically. It took her five minutes to steady it as she went to her Spanish class. What of that?

I spent the rest of the day listening to Bella's heartbeat. Perhaps if I worked out it's rhythm, it would give me some way into her thoughts. Perhaps.

When lunch came around, I hurried to my car and sank into my seat. I quickly started the engine and drove quickly out of the car lot. Even though she was inside the cafeteria with Alice, talking about my sister's anniversary plans, I could still smell her agonising, mouth-watering scent. It was something floral and natural, like freesia and berries mixed together.

I wanted her. I wanted her blood so badly it made my body ache with a fire I'd never felt before.

I could take her. I could do it right now. I could run back to the school and whisk her away before anybody had time to blink—

_EDWARD, GET OUT OF HERE. NOW! _Alice's mental voice screamed.

I hesitated, only at the mouth of the car lot. Alice started focussing excessively on Jasper, translating her favourite moments with him in Farsi.

"What are you hiding?" I whispered, desperately trying to focus past her Farsi thinking.

_Just go, _she pleaded.

In that split second of Alice's lapse, I saw the flash of a monster. It was after school; Bella was before me. We sat over my copy of Dracula. She leaned over the book, her hair falling around her head. A sensuous haze stole my mind—

I shuddered away from the images of me grabbing Bella and sinking my teeth into her soft, vulnerable throat.

I floored the accelerator and drove as far away as I could.

I wasn't sure where I was going. All I cared about was putting miles and miles between myself and Bella Swan and her impossible brown eyes. But I couldn't get away from the image in her eyes Alice had seen: my hungry, feverish eyes; my gleaming, sharp teeth; my pale, steel hands grabbing Bella towards me; her blood-curdling screams as I tore into her throat and drank her life away.

My stomach tightened and my muscles flexed, ready for me to go back and make the kill. "Damn it!" I pulled over on the empty road and leaped out of my car, running into the thicket of woodland trees. The fresh, pine air filled my nostrils but it did little to assuage the memory of Bella's scent in my mind.

I lashed out, punching at an old oak probably as old as my 400 year old father and snapped its bark right through the middle. The tree trembled and fell backwards, its leaves sweeping the air around it as if trying to catch onto a sister tree for help.

I kicked and roared and punched at the old oak until nothing was left but ash. I pushed away the images of my attack on Bella, refusing to give in.

I'd worked so hard to change myself. I'd given up human blood over sixty years ago for good. I'd learned to control my thirst, to ignore the aching that rang through my body when a human got too close. I hadn't felt the urge to truly kill someone since the 40's. Nobody had ever made me lose control like this, twice in one week. I usually got past the first temptation. Alice's visions last Monday hadn't been as concrete as they had this afternoon. But I'd disappeared anyway, more trying to run from the monster I did not want to be than from Bella.

That stupid teenage girl. This was all her fault. Why was her blood so overwhelming, so enticing? I could scarcely think of anything else this past week. Ever since we'd met, my life had turned into a game of trying not to kill Bella Swan.

How did an ordinary seventeen year old have such an effect on me?

Maybe all the mythical stories were true. Maybe she was some type of witch; an enchantress.

I sank onto the forest floor and let the fresh air permeate my desire. It was easier to think out here, with no smell of fresh, pumping blood to distract me.

Taking a teaching position at Forks High School had by far been the worst decision of my existence. At least as a student—the role I usually played—I was able to keep an air of anonymity and shun human attention. I was such an idiot to bring the spotlight onto myself like this. But I'd signed a contract, pledging my services for a year to the school.

I wasn't sure I would be able to fulfil it anymore, not with Bella Swan in my class. I was such an idiot to have arranged extra lessons with her. I kept telling myself it was so that I could try and unlock her mind but I knew why I really wanted to be near her.

The monstrous images flashed in my mind again.

Suddenly, all the memories of my murders came flashing back.

Hundreds of faces, young and old, male and female, terrified and pleading stormed through my mind.

"Stop it!" I growled, clasping my head.

Such was the agonising pain of being telepathic: I not only got to hear the fear scream from their mouths, but I felt it too in their minds. I felt every wound, every horror, and every desperate wish for mercy as I sank my teeth into their flesh and sucked their lives away with relish.

It only took me a few months after my birth as a vampire to give up killing innocents. I changed my prey to the scum of society: the warlords, the rapists, the wife beaters, the murderers and con artists—I killed countlessly for a decade. Human blood was by far the greatest joy I'd ever experienced but the price I had to pay, hearing the suffering of my victims, grew too much.

I didn't want to do that to Bella Swan. I didn't want to do that to me.

I couldn't be that monster again. I hated that vile creature, skulking around alleys and sifting through shadows to catch my prey. I had been a villain in every sense of the word.

I could not be that again. I would not.

A loud ringing filled the air.

I pulled out my phone from my pocket in a flash. A brief glance at the ID told me it was Alice.

"What did you see?" I demanded.

"You won't hurt her." Alice practically sang, speaking with more joy than I'd heard before. "I've never seen your future so secure before. You hate being a monster more than you want her blood."

I leaned back into the tree and sighed with relief. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." She said firmly.

"Should I come back?"

"Maybe take the rest of the day off. And maybe cancel those extra lessons, just in case."

"But I already arranged them. It will seem stranger if I cancel them."

"I can tutor her." Alice held many degrees and doctorates, like most of our family.

"Again, adding to suspicion."

Alice was silent for a moment. "Fine, but I'm sitting in on the class."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. That we can get away with."

"Perfect." She trilled. "I'll see you at home."

I sprang up from my spot and ran a mile back to my car in two seconds. "See you at class today, Miss Cullen."

"What?" she gasped. "I thought you were going home."

"I'm not being chased out of school by an inconsequential teenager. Those days are meant to be over."

Alice laughed. "Edward, we're stuck as teenagers for eternity. The high school drama will never stop."

"_Is there no pity sitting in the clouds_," I muttered.

"See you later, Shakespeare."

We hung up and I slipped back into my car. My clothes were slightly soiled from my tree exercises. I sighed and sped home, changing into similar grey trousers and a black shirt with more of a sheen to it than my previous one. No human would notice though: their eyes weren't as sharp nor their memories as concrete. We Vampires on the other hand could remember everything as clear as day from eons ago or hours, such as the fact Bella was wearing a light grey jumper and black jeans with scruffy grey Converses. It was considerably brighter than her entirely black ensemble last Monday.

I shook my head clear and flashed back to my car. I was back at the high school ten minutes before the bell ending lunch sounded. I shut myself in my classroom and focussed on my notes for teaching William Faulkner and Tennessee Williams this afternoon, refusing to contemplate on what would come afterwards.


	5. Unexpected

When the bell rang through the high school, signalling the end of the day, a great pit of fear seized me. I knew Alice had seen that I wouldn't hurt Bella Swan now but…

"Hi, Edward!"

I looked up at my sister's voice. She strode into my classroom, her golden eyes scrutinising my face. Her visions flashed in her mind: the three of us pored over Dracula, discussing symbolism and metaphors; Bella going home safely.

"Hello," I said with relief.

Alice grinned and sat down at the desk before me.

Just as I was about to ask where Bella was, an erratic heartbeat and dizzyingly sweet smell filled the room. I looked to the door and saw Bella standing there, a nervous smile on her face.

"I hope you don't mind Alice joining us." I said, offering her a smile.

Her heartbeat sped up. Were Vampire smiles really that terrifying? I saw my reflecion in her eyes: I was too pale, too defined; too impossible with my gold eyes. I supposed there was something deeply uncanny about me. Her human instincts were probably screaming at her to run away.

"Not at all," Bella replied timidly, stepping into the room. Her cheeks pooled with a red blush.

I gripped the handles of my chair and clenched my mouth, shutting off my airways. I didn't need air to survive but Bella was making it impossible to breathe.

I watched her move over the classroom, taking a seat beside Alice. She seemed to relax next to my sister, even though Alice posed essentially the same risk that I did to her. I wondered if Alice had befriended her just so that I wouldn't kill her.

They both looked at me expectantly.

"So, Dracula." I said, opening my lungs. I was braced for the scorch of Bella's scent down my throat but it didn't make it any easier to swallow.

Alice rolled her eyes. _Really, of all the texts you could've picked? Are you trying to tell her subliminally?_

I smiled at Alice, trying not to laugh, momentarily distracted. I didn't actually know why I'd picked _Dracula._ Perhaps I was being poetic. Or maybe I just wanted to know what Bella thought of Vampires.

Bella's eyes flitted between me and Alice, a small smile on her face as though she was softened by our sibling interaction. I looked at her curiously, wondering why on earth I couldn't hear her thoughts.

I got off my chair and went around to the front of my desk, gently sitting down on it. One rash movement and the entire thing would have collapsed beneath my inhumane force. "How did you find the book?" I asked, looking directly at Bella. There was exactly seventy-two centimetres between us. And yet not a whisper came from her mind.

A mixture of emotions flitted across her eyes: nerves, fear; wonder. "Uhm, I loved the prose but the story was pretty grotesque."

I smiled. "Yes, it is. How did you find the vampire plot?" I briefly glanced at my copy of the book before her. That thing would be covered with her scent now. I wasn't sure whether to be pleased or agonised by that.

_Are you trying to gauge her feelings on vampires? _Alice asked, amused. I could see myself and Bella through her mind, her eyes flitting between us.

"I felt like it was a great way to express middle-class dissent." Bella replied, looking at me seriously. "I don't know, I feel like all these Gothic stories are a great way to show confusion with the natural order in their societies."

"What would you define the natural order as?" I enquired, genuinely curious.

Bella contemplated for a few moments. "I'd say the man-made hierarchies of like class and race have been pitched as the natural order. Maybe the vampires and mythical creatures are an expression of the desire to be above these hierarchies but to do so means becoming alienated and seen as the 'Other'."

I was slightly taken aback by Bella's intelligent response. I hadn't heard such an enlightened answer in any of my classes thus far.

"I think the real monsters of society are the ones who kill Dracula." Alice said, flashing a grin at me.

I pulled my eyes away from Bella, a wry smile on my face. "Is that so, Alice? You're not offended by his diet choice?"

Alice shrugged. "I mean, he's not entirely blameless. He does let himself be a murderer but there doesn't seem to be any other option available to him. Isn't he just following the natural way of things: we eat animals, he eats people?"

I burst out laughing. I really should have picked another book. The irony in this story was too much.

"Yeah, I suppose no one really offers him an alternative lifestyle or some way to reform." Bella added. My eyes drew back to her. She seemed a little unnerved by my look, sinking back into her seat as her heart thumped unevenly. "Maybe he's a dramatization of the damage powerful people inflict on the defenceless, like rich vs poor, a sort of sly critique of the people who ran society then."

"I totally see that." Alice chirped. "It's kind of a Marxist undertone if we go with that analysis but I like the idea of using mythical creatures to symbolise society's flaws."

"Does that mean we condone Dracula's behaviour or should we be against it?" I asked, looking between Bella and Alice.

We spent the next forty minutes discussing in this way. Bella continued to surprise me with her intelligent answers, probing into the hypocrisies latent within society and Alice continued to make me laugh with her cryptic references to our own lifestyle. The thirst for Bella's blood was still there but it was controllable, overshadowed by my desire to know her thoughts. She was such an enigma. Why couldn't I hear her thoughts?

All too soon, it was time to stop curtesy of Alice.

"Wow, it's almost four." She said, looking at her wristwatch. "Are we done?"

"Sure," I said unwillingly. I hadn't cracked Bella's mind. I was not done. I looked at her then as she began to pack her things away. It was like there was an invisible wall around her mind, keeping me out.

_Quit staring at her, I can practically see the venom drool, _Alice said smugly.

I looked at Alice, annoyed.

_What are sisters for if not to annoy you?_ She smirked, interpreting my glare.

"Uhm, Mr Cullen, do I give this back to you?" Bella asked.

My eyes flashed towards her. I heard her heart jump. Was she that afraid of me?

"No, you can keep it until you get your own copy, Bella."

"Thanks." She smiled timidly.

There was something about the softness of her brown eyes, flecked with honey and orange tones and her pink lipped smile that made my body fill with desire. Bella seemed to freeze under my gaze.

_Stop staring, _Alice hissed.

I looked at my sister, guilty.

I watched Bella shake her head as if trying to dispel a stupor through Alice's eyes.

"Want to go get some coffee?" Alice asked her cheerfully.

Bella smiled apologetically. "I've got to call my mom at four-thirty, I promised."

"No problem, another time." Alice smiled at her.

I noticed Bella's heart stayed steady when Alice looked or smiled at her. How could she be afraid of me but not my sister, equally a vampire?

"See you tomorrow!" Alice waved.

"Bye, Alice, Mr Cullen." She threw smiles in our directions and hurried off.

"Goodbye, Bella." I called.

Her heart stuttered. She looked over her shoulder—her deep eyes betraying no hint of her fear—and smiled quickly before disappearing out the door.

Alice's hand suddenly whacked me on my arm. "Why do you keep calling her Bella?"

I stared at her, puzzled. "It's her name, genius."

"People only call her Bella after she corrects them, Einstein. She told me at lunch today she found it weird that you knew what to call her."

I stared at Alice in shock as she replayed their conversation in her mind. I'd slipped up again. This Bella girl was fast becoming my undoing.

* * *

><p><strong>Bella's POV<strong>

I went home kind of in a daze. Mr Cullen was even better looking up close. It was so hard to focus when he was so impossibly beautiful.

Seeing him interact with Alice was even more heart-warming. He was so playful with her and funny; it was a side teachers rarely showed until like the last day of school.

When I got back to Charlie's empty house, I flopped onto the sofa for a while and stared up at the ceiling. Mr Cullen was mesmerising. Discussing literature with him was making him more attractive. These next two weeks were going to be such an exercise of my self-control. I kind of just wanted to throw myself at him and never let go but the probability of eternal embarrassment was too definite. There was no way I'd get a guy like Mr Cullen: he was too perfect for someone as ordinary as me.

I wondered if his and Alice's parents were plastic surgeons. They were so stunning with their defined faces, the smooth, marble skin and captivating gold eyes. If they came into school dressed one day in Grecian robes, I wouldn't need much persuading to think the Greek gods had descended upon us.

Ah well. At least I had some good eye-candy for my time here at Forks. Fawning helplessly over my English teacher was safe at any rate: he was entirely impossible for me, league-wise and law-wise.

After the half-hour long call with my mom, I went off to the kitchen to make dinner for Charlie and me. I wasn't feeling particularly creative so I ended up making chicken salad and roast potatoes.

At six, I heard the door rattle and open, just as I was getting everything out from the oven. My timing was perfect. I mentally applauded myself.

"Bells?" Charlie called.

"In here," I called back.

"We've got guests today!" Charlie sounded thrilled.

Crap. I hadn't made enough for more than two. I set the dishes down on the table and hurried out to the living room.

"Bella, you remember Billy Black and his son Jacob right?" Charlie beamed, gesturing at his friends behind him.

Billy Black sat in a wheelchair, his long dark hair tied back in a pony-tail and his wide, brown face smiling up at me. Jacob stood next to him, grinning widely at me in a dark jacket that hid his muscles well.

"Yeah, sure I do. Hi!" I smiled back at them.

"Bella and I ran into each other the other day actually," Jacob said, still smiling at me.

"Really? Ain't that nice," Charlie said, shrugging out of his jacket.

"I hope you don't mind our unexpected visit." Billy said to me. "But we brought a gift!" He held up a greasy paper bag, emanating a strong smell of fish.

"Is that Harry's fish-fry?" Charlie asked hopefully.

"It sure is," Billy grinned.

"And something that smells a bit better," Jacob chuckled, bringing out a red box of chocolates from his back and holding them out to me. "Welcome to Forks."

"You guys didn't have to," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"Naw, it's fine." Jacob grinned. "Here," he shook the box a little.

I took the chocolates. "Thank you, guys."

"Mm, something smells good." Charlie said, sniffing the air and wandering closer to the kitchen.

I was worried about how to feed our extra guests but luckily Charlie had a bag of frozen fries in the freezer that he insisted he cook, despite my offer. I couldn't help it: my mom's cooking near enough made the kitchen explode and Charlie could just about work a microwave. I kept a careful eye on him as he navigated the stove and oil.

Charlie told Jacob to eat his plate, clearly too smitten with the fish to have room for anything else.

"I'm gonna put the game on," Billy said, wheeling himself back out to the living room expertly.

Charlie had the fries done in like five minutes and headed back out to the living room with the food and beers for him and Billy.

"Am I right in thinking they're practically married?" I asked Jacob as we ate in the kitchen.

He laughed, his black eyes glimmering in the kitchen light. My stomach swooped. "Yeah, they're like old women now, always yacking away together over drinks. This is great food by the way,"

"Thanks, it's nothing." I speared a potato and chewed on it.

"So, how's settling into your new school going?"

"Not bad. I've stopped getting lost and everyone's really nice."

"So no high school beef yet?" he grinned.

"Well, I haven't hit anyone's car with my truck yet so I'm doing okay."

He laughed. "Yeah, at least you won't have to worry about getting hurt in that beast. She inflicts more damage,"

"Is this based on experience?"

Jacob nodded seriously. "Oh yeah, we've had a few run ins over the years. The other car was always worse off. Nothing life threatening but that truck's body can withstand a lot."

"How is the engine…"

Jacob and I fell away into endless conversation about the truck, our schools and friends and hopes for the future. He wanted to move out someday, get a job in the city running his own business. I'd only planned as far as college but Jacob seemed to know already what direction his life was heading in.

He was a nice kid—and kid I could call him because he was a few months younger than me. You wouldn't have been able to tell though with the way he looked; he seemed a lot older than his years. His big twin sisters had moved out a few years ago, leaving him to run the house with Billy. He was a bit of a goof ball, but he also understood what it was like be more of a parent than a child sometimes. I could see myself getting along with Jacob Black really well.

"Jacob, shall we go, son?"

Jacob and I looked up to see Billy at the doorway. I looked at the clock: it was almost ten p.m. had we been talking for that long now?

"Yeah, sure." Jacob said, getting up and stretching.

I felt my body was a bit stiff too from sitting all this time. I got up and shook out my limbs a little.

"Thanks for having us over," Jacob said as we all walked to the front door.

"No, thank you guys for coming!" I smiled.

Charlie shook hands with the guys and helped Billy out of the front door. I lingered in the hallway as Jacob shrugged his jacket back on over his well-chosen navy shirt.

"See you around, Bella." Jacob said. "Come stop by our house whenever you've got time! We can even make mud-pies again if you want."

"Sure thing," I laughed, raising my hand in a wave.

Jacob grinned and opened his arms up for a hug.

We embraced, his strong arms wrapping around my body momentarily. The guy had the temperature of a furnace: his body heat almost singed through our clothes as his muscles tightened around me.

It felt so good to be held. I closed my eyes briefly, revelling in the feel of Jacob around me.

"See you," I said, pulling out of the warm hug.

Jacob smiled, his arms falling to his sides. "Night, Bella." His dark eyes glimmered.

I stood by the doorway as I watched him walk down our driveway. He got into the truck as Charlie came back up the path. We waved Billy and Jacob away.

"That was nice," I said as Charlie shut the door.

"It was, wasn't it?" Charlie said happily. "Yeah, they're a great family. Jacob's a great kid too."

"Mmm," I smiled and turned away towards the kitchen. My cheeks felt very hot.

"Let me do the dishes," Charlie protested, gently catching my arm. "You do too much around here."

"Just trying to earn my keep," I joked.

"Bella, you don't have to earn anything here. This is your home too." Charlie said firmly. "Now, go get some rest."

"All right. Night, Dad."

"Night, Bells."

I slept very peacefully that night with the warmth of Jacob's hug still lingering around me.


	6. The Problem with Eavesdropping

**Edward's POV**

I'd never been so eager to get to school in all my years. No amount of reading, or arm wrestling with Alice or running through the forest could distract me enough. The hours were long and drawn out; each minute like an eternity as I waited to start the next day.

Esme, my adoptive mother, kept wondering what was wrong with me. Apparently, I was more energetic than usual and seemed preoccupied. She kept thinking about asking Alice but I'd sworn Alice to secrecy—for now. All my family knew was that a student had smelled so good I nearly lost it. And I'd ran away. But now I was back. And I was better than fine.

"Edward, you ready?" Alice asked from three floors below, her voice no more than a murmur.

"Coming." I said back.

I'd been ready for hours. I'd showered at five a.m. and ironed every single piece of clothing in my wardrobe as I passed the time, waiting to get going.

In no more than a second, I'd sped out of my room and down the stairs to the front door. I was no more than a blur of movement and yet I could see every step I took as clearly as day.

_Somebody looks eager, _Alice thought smugly. Our extra class flashed in her mind: the three of us laughing over Dracula; Bella getting home safe and alive.

I rolled my eyes at her. "Watch it or I'll tell Jasper what you're getting him."

Alice narrowed her tawny eyes. "You wouldn't dare."

I smirked. "Try me."

_Wow, somebody's defensive,_ she thought wryly.

"Just get in the car," I groaned, leading the way.

"Have a good day!" Esme called, appearing at the top of the stairs out of nowhere.

"Bye, mom!" Alice sang, grinning like a small child.

Esme's smile softened; her heart blazing in her eyes.

If it hadn't been for my mother's overwhelming maternal love for us adopted Vampires, I wouldn't have believed love could ever exist. Sure, there was the love of companionship that I'd felt for my adoptive father Carlisle but ever since he'd brought Esme into our lives, my views had changed. There was still a purity left in us, illustrated by my mother's overwhelming compassion for those around her. Such was her heart that she'd only tasted human blood once—once was enough to disgust her from the monster she refused to be.

"See you later," I ran up the stairs in a moment and pecked her lightly on her cold, soft cheek. "And stop worrying about me. I'm fine."

Esme patted my cheek lightly, her dark brown eyes—it had been over a week since she'd fed—scrutinising my face. "I'm the mom, I'm meant to worry."

"There's nothing to worry about." I promised. "Truly."

"He's fine, Esme." Alice said reassuringly, appearing at our sides. "I think he's just proud at how great his self-control is."

Esme looked between the two of us shrewdly. "All right, if you say so. Off to school then," she laughed lightly. "You'd think it'd stop being funny after a century."

I grinned and left the house with Alice, our fast feet barely sounding against the ground as we walked. Alice's mind was surprisingly blank as we got into the car. I sensed an attack on the horizon once we were out of Esme's earshot.

The roads flew away beneath my Volvo's tires. We were at the school in two minutes, ten minutes before the bell went.

"Not so fast," Alice said, her pale hand anchoring me to my seat as I made to leave.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Why are you so interested in Isabella Swan?" Alice asked, peering at me. "You've proven your self-restraint. So what's the deal with the extra classes?"

"Nothing," I protested innocently.

Alice rolled her eyes. "I might not be able to read your mind, Edward, but I can read your face. I know when you're lying to me."

I sighed and gently peeled her hand off my shoulder. It was very difficult for me and Alice to keep secrets from each other, so we didn't. Her visions and my mind-reading made it too difficult to keep our thoughts to ourselves. Of all my siblings, she was the one I was closest with.

"I can't read Bella's mind."

Alice froze, gawking at me. "What?" she barely whispered.

I sighed and looked away from her to the car lot.

"How is that even possible?" Alice murmured. "This has never happened before. Is she dangerous?" she was talking to herself now, focussing her mind on my future. "I can't see any threats."

"Alice, don't be so worried." I said lightly, turning back to her. "Bella's not a threat."

"Why can't you read her mind then?" she asked, perplexed.

I shrugged. "That I'd love to know. I've been trying to see if proximity will help me get a reading but it hasn't made a difference yet."

"So _that's_ why you've been staring at her so hard." Alice said, relieved.

I was about to protest over not staring so hard but thought it was best to avoid lying.

"Have you told Carlisle?"

"No," I replied, "I don't know if it's anything to get worried over."

"Worried or not, this is so interesting." Alice mused, staring out the windshield thoughtfully. "I never thought this could be possible."

"Maybe she just has a really thick skull,"

Alice rolled her eyes, smiling. "Well, it's nice that somebody finally has one over on you."

"Until another mind-reader comes along, I'm still winning." I flashed a devilish grin at her and got out of the car.

The stuttering of a heartbeat filled my ears. My head snapped to the right as I saw what I knew I would: Bella Swan, a few spaces down, was looking right at us.

I saw her eyes widen with shock; a small tremor quaked through her body. Her heartbeat thundered. She tried to quickly arrange her features into a friendly smile but the surprise was still there on her face.

Was it that unusual to see a teacher in the car lot? Why was Bella so afraid of me?

But all I could hear from her was her steadying heart and breaths. I smiled back at her lightly, wishing I could decode her.

"Bella!" Alice called, walking over to her.

"Hey," Bella's soft voice rang out in the cold air.

If I had a heart, I knew it would have been stuttering now too.

"Did you do your History assignment?" Alice asked brightly.

I turned away from my sister and Bella, quietly berating myself for not having enrolled as a student instead. There was only so close I could get to Bella as her teacher.

Still, I had our classes. That'd be sufficient enough for now while I worked out how she was blocking me from her thoughts.

When the bell for first period rang, I sat at my desk, staring at the door expectantly. Bella had narrowly avoided Mike Newton's hints to go to the Homecoming dance with him. He had been trying to gauge her feelings on the event: clearly, from her pained expression, she was not a fan of the idea. The Newton boy had other plans though: he would ask her to the dance at lunch in front of all their friends. It was a heartless tactic: Bella was too nice to say no in front of all their friends.

Unless she secretly wanted to go with him? Hmm. That was an option.

I blew out an angry sigh. It was so irritating having to guess at her thoughts.

The door to my classroom opened and my students began filing in. I greeted them all with a professional smile, ignoring the awkward thoughts of my female students and the jealousy of the boys. Ah, high school drama. One could never be too old.

Bella's scent filled the air as she walked near. I turned my gaze to my notes, trying not to count the steps she took to her seat. I watched her through the minds of her classmates: she seemed calm enough. Her heart was beating steadily, albeit slightly faster than normal. It calmed down a little as she sat down.

Once the greeting chatter was over between the children, I stood up. The class felt silent immediately. It was quite hilarious how easily the kids at the school responded to my authority.

I introduced our topic for the day and handed out the questions I wanted them to answer towards the end of the class. I stole a glance at Bella as I handed her a different paper. Her smile was timid as she looked up at me, her soft snowy face pooling with a light blush. She went red a lot when she was nervous, I'd realised.

I smiled back at her and carried on walking, pretending not to hear the hike in her heart rate. Hmm…

I never usually paid much attention to other females but I had a theory to test.

As I handed out the question papers, I smiled at all my students, looking them briefly in the eye.

The girls thoughts went like this:  
><em>Oh my, God. He is so beautiful.<br>That smile. Gah. Those eyes.  
>He wants me. Oh my god, the way he smiled at me!<em>

The boys, mercifully, had other thoughts:  
><em>I wonder if he wears make up.<br>That guy shouldn't be a teacher. I wonder if any of the girls even get work done here…  
>plastic surgery. No way in freaking hell anybody is that good looking. I wonder if he'll hook me up…<em>

Theory: Bella found me attractive which led to the quickened heartbeats.  
>Probability: plausible.<br>Truth: I'd never know.

I sighed and taught away, pushing out thoughts of Bella for the hour and trying not to inhale too much. Bella still sent a scorching ache through my throat, a burning want that was beginning to fuse into my bones.

When class ended, Bella timidly made eye contact with me on her way up to drop her answers at my desk.

"See you later." I said, keeping my face blank.

Bella just smiled nervously and walked off, her heart beating too hard regardless.

I tried not to be too pleased about that.

When lunch came, I decided to stay in my room for the hour instead of going out for air. I threw my windows open, letting the frosty air diffuse the alluring scent of my students that were significantly easier to bear than Bella's.

I watched the events in the lunch hall through Alice's mind, waiting to see what Bella would say to Mike.

_Why is the car still in the lot? _Alice thought. _Edward, are you not going out for lunch? _

"I'm not particularly in need of the trip." I replied quietly, angling my body away from the door so I didn't look like I was talking to myself from the outside.

_Do you want me to come over?_ She asked. _Let's ditch. I am so bored of school and it hasn't even been a month. _

"We promised we'd finish at least a semester." I chuckled quietly.

_I know but it's just so tedious here. The school is too small for any real fun. _"Bella!" she called suddenly.

I watched her approach Bella and go and get food together. They talked about their classes, complaining about homework and the like until they went and sat down at a table. They barely had a second to breathe before Mike Newton appeared.

"Hey, Bella!" Mike's voice was too high-pitched to be calm.

I snorted.

Mike looked at Alice and smiled. "Hi,"

"Hello." She said politely, surveying him with blank eyes.

_What a babe, _Mike drawled.

"What's up?" Bella asked, looking at Mike with something short of annoyance on her face.

"Nothing," he ruffled his hair nervously. "H-how was your day so far?"

"Good." Bella said suspiciously. "You look like you came to ask me something."

_Oh jeez, _Mike panicked. _Do I ask her now, in front of Alice Cullen? God, if she rejects me in front of Alice Cullen—this is so not—what do I—_"Will you go to the dance with me?" Mike's words came out fast and frightened.

I laughed. I couldn't help myself.

_Eavesdropper, _Alice threw in my direction.

"I'm bored," I chuckled.

"Oh." Bella's face was horrified. Aghast. Confused. Uncomfortable.

I felt overwhelmingly satisfied. Relieved, even.

Hm. Strange.

Why did I care so much that she didn't want to go with the boy?

_Oh, great. Crap. For god's sake. She's gonna say no. she looks like she's gonna say no. crap. Crap. Crap. _Mike Newton was freaking out, his face turning visibly deeper shades of red.

Alice lightly kicked Bella under the table.

Bella straightened up, shaking off the horror on her face. Almost. "Well, uh, Mike, I can't dance."

"Are you going with someone else?" he asked sullenly.

Bella shook her head. "No, it's not that. I just really don't like to dance. I wasn't even planning on going."

"Yeah, Bella and I have plans for that day." Alice suddenly put in.

Mike looked at her, his thoughts momentarily freezing as he looked at the beautiful vampire. "You can't make plans another day?"

I burst out laughing. Hadn't he realised Bella just did not want to go with him?

"No." Alice said coldly, her face falling into a dark stare.

Mike's heartbeat jumped. He stepped back hastily. "Right, well, okay. See you, I guess." He threw Bella a hasty smile, avoided Alice's gaze and hurried off. _Damn. That Cullen chick is scary. So hot. But so friggin scary…_

I turned my thoughts away from him and focussed on Bella. She seemed visibly more relieved sinking back into her chair like she'd just come home from a long day.

"Thanks a lot," she said to Alice gratefully.

"So, where do you want to go?" Alice asked brightly.

"Go?" Bella looked at her in confusion, her thin brows knitting together.

"Yeah. We're not going to the dance, we're going elsewhere, remember?" Alice flashed her sparkly white teeth.

Bella froze for a moment. Her heartbeat seemed to disappear.

I tensed—

But then her heartbeat continued. Hm. The girl did have a sense of reserve after all; she wasn't completely oblivious to the threat my sister posed.

"Right." Bella said. "Um, well, you can decide."

"Yay!" Alice trilled and began throwing a million and one plans at Bella.

I turned away from their conversation and looked at the clock. Just two and a half hours to go…

"…and it felt really weird. In a nice way."

My mind snapped back to Bella's voice.

"Weird in what way?" Alice asked, a sly grin creeping on her face. _I KNEW IT! I didn't even have to envision this. _She was giggling mentally.

I hadn't been listening. What was Bella talking about?

Bella's face had gone red. She had a small smile playing on her lips. I felt instantly uneasy, like somebody was about to pull the rug from under my feet.

"Weird in like I never wanted him to let go kind of way."

I sucked in a useless, sharp breath. Human reaction. Bella was talking about a boy.

Alice was practically bubbling with excitement. "Did he say anything after?"

Bella shook her head. "No, we hugged goodbye—it was kind of a long hug, or well, it felt long—and then Jacob and his dad left."

"Did you make plans to meet up again?" Alice probed.

Bella shook her head.

"Swap numbers?"

Bella shook her head again, embarrassment filling her face. "Well, we have each other's house numbers. Our dads are best friends."

"Wow, you kind of suck at this." Alice said sympathetically.

"I've never had a boyfriend before," Bella admitted, pink-faced.

Alice looked at her dubiously. "Really? I find that hard to believe."

She wasn't the only one.

"I'm probably just reading too much into it, anyway." Bella said quickly. "It was just a moment."

"That's usually all it takes," Alice waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

I tried to tune out of their conversation.

Yes, a moment was all it took. A moment was all it took to make or break one's life. A moment was all it took to meet someone who had the capability to unhinge your life from the very roots you thought would never shake.

A moment was all it took for me to realise I was not happy Bella liked somebody.

I stood up and went over to the window, pulling the fresh, damp air into my body. A hollowness seemed to spread through my chest, carving a darkness I'd never felt before in all my years. I felt empty. Disappointed. Confused. Alone.

Perhaps this was a territorial thing. I didn't want my potential prey—for that she firstly was—to be occupied with anything other than me. I wanted her where I could have her, not in the arms of another guy.

_Would you listen to yourself? You sound pathetic. So what if a teenage girl has a crush on another boy? She's not your concern, _I berated myself.

"Edward?" Alice's voice called softly.

I whipped around as she slipped quietly into the room. Alice was just about five feet; her frame was slender and clad in a grey dress with black tights. She had a small, pixie like face that gave her a childlike air sometimes, especially when her black hair was stuck up in all different directions. But now she held a sombre look on her face, seeming far older than I felt.

A vision flashed across her mind:

I was sat at the top of the valley cliff, watching the ocean. Brooding. Unable to cry. Pain was all over my face.

Another vision:

Our class with Bella today. Me, watching her forlornly from my desk. Me, smiling and laughing at everything she said. Me, running home on my own after the class; tearing trees from their roots; screaming blackly into the night.

"What?" I looked at her, confused. "I don't understand."

"Don't pretend with me." Alice said gently. "I know you're hurt."

I faked a laugh. "What could I possibly be hurt about?"

"You like her, don't you?" Alice said, surveying me with sad eyes.

"Please," I scoffed, "she's just a child."

"You're still seventeen." Alice reminded me. "That hormonal teenager in you was bound to resurface at some point."

"I'm a hundred and eight years old, Alice. I don't think the word teenager will ever apply to me, no matter how handsome I look." I grinned. Too wide.

Outside, a gasp sounded. Stuttering heartbeats.

Alice and I whipped to the door—too slow, too human—and caught sight of a wave of brown hair disappearing fast down the corner.

"Bella." Alice and I said at the same time. We stared at each other in horror.

* * *

><p><em>AN: How do you think Bella will react? How should she react? I'd love to hear your thoughts! Thanks for reading!_


	7. Strange Behaviour

_A/N: Hi guys, sorry I haven't posted in so long. I was snowed under with deadlines and have just been recovering this week. I'll be posting more later tonight so hopefully you haven't all lost interest. Thanks for sticking with this story! Please pray I get good grades guys, those essays were so much stress I can't even._

_From here on, things start to get more intense as Bella begins to piece things together..._

* * *

><p><strong>Edward's POV<strong>

"No," Alice said, grabbing my arm, "I'll go."

"But—"

"It'll look more suspicious. I'll tell her we were just rehearsing a play for a party Esme's throwing." Alice shoved me back towards my desk, her face fierce. "Just be normal."

And she was gone.

God. How. DAMN IT!

I kicked out, my foot colliding into the wall. The concrete gave way, leaving a dent the depth of an arm. I groaned and grabbed my head, forcing myself to mimic slow breathing and calm by frenzied thoughts.

Bella couldn't have heard much. Just our ages. It would be easy to explain.

What if she thought we were some freaks now? I roamed through the school, trying to find Alice and Bella. I wanted to scream. I needed to know what she was thinking! Of all the people's thoughts I couldn't access, why was it the one person whose thoughts of me I actually wanted to hear?

* * *

><p><strong>Bella's POV<strong>

So that was weird. That was really weird. That was so freaking weird.

Just a corridor away from Gym, a cold hand tugged on my arm.

I flew around in surprise and came face to face with Alice's honey-gold eyes. "Whoa. H-h-hi." I stammered.

Alice let my hand go, stepping back a little. A small smile flitted across her oddly blank face. "Are you okay? We saw you at the door but you just disappeared."

"Yeah, course." I replied nervously. "I thought I'd come and get you instead of being early to Gym but you guys looked pretty intense so I left."

Alice smiled, waving a hand carelessly. "Don't be silly, you should've just come in. We were just rehearsing a play for our mother's dinner party."

"A play?" I repeated. Oh. Wow. That made sense.

Alice nodded, grinning a white smile. "Yeah. What did you think? She gestured down the hall as she spoke, stepping into a walk.

I followed suit, walking beside her. "You guys seemed really serious. Edward said he was a hundred and eight?"

Something flashed across Alice's face—Surprise? Fear? Confusion? Nerves?—before she smiled amusedly. "Yeah, he's playing an old man cursed into teenage immortality by a witch. I play a ghost; his best friend. I keep him sane and try to help him defeat the witch."

"Wow." I felt stunned. "That sounds like one hell of a play."

Alice laughed. "Yeah, I helped write it. So, what do you wanna do when we get out of town?"

And that was that. We didn't mention the play again. Part of me felt like it was too good to be true. Alice and I had split up at the corridor of Mr Cullen's room while she went to go see him. I'd dithered in the hallway, not wanting to be on my own in Gym. How had she gone from checking on him to rehearsing a play? Unless he was just having trouble remembering that line. But it could only have been for a minute or so we'd been separated. Obviously, there was no way Mr Cullen was actually a hundred and eight years old but that 'rehearsal' had seemed so insanely _real. _If he were that good an actor, he should've been on stage and not in a classroom.

_Will you listen to yourself? It's just a play. He's not a magical creature. _

Gah. No wonder mom left. This place was so boring I was ready to believe in magic.

That was the problem with being such an avid reader. Books could make you believe absolutely anything was possible— even young, beautiful men being a hundred years old.

Yeah, I needed to get out more.

When the end of the day bell rang, I couldn't help but feel a little nervous. And hesitant. And super tired.

Seeming to read my mind, Alice nudged me as we packed our things away. "Hey, do you want to skip Edward's class?"

I tried to hide the hope in my face. "Can we do that?"

Alice smiled, her small face brightening into a dazzling beam. "Sure, he's not that fussed anyway. I think he just felt bad you already did the book they're studying. You seem to know your stuff anyway."

"Will he mind?" I asked nervously. "I don't want him to think I'm ungrateful. _Dracula _for the first time is way better than repeating _Wuthering Heights. _But, like, home is even better."

Alice laughed; a music sound. Why did everything she do have to be beautiful? Ugh. If I tried to laugh like her I'd probably sound like a braying horse. "He won't. Teachers want to go home even more than students do."

Alice stiffened for a moment and quickly relaxed into a smile—so quick I was sure I'd imagined it.

I followed her line of sight and nearly jumped. It was Mr Cullen.

"Hey, Edward," Alice said.

"Alice," he nodded at her, smiling lightly. His golden eyes fell on me. "Bella."

"Hi, Sir." I said formally, trying to fight the need to swoon.

"Are you two coming to class?" he asked, looking between us.

"Actually, we were hoping we could skip." Alice said hopefully, a sly grin on her face.

Mr Cullen rolled his eyes. "I knew you would not be able to last the week."

Alice stuck her tongue out at him.

"You can skip." Mr Cullen said. His eyes fell back on me. "You're a bright student. I don't think you will need much more teaching. Write me a paper on anything that has stuck out to you in the book for next Monday. We will be moving onto Mary Shelley so you can start participating in class again."

"I thought we weren't starting _Frankenstein_ for another week?" I asked, surprised.

"Yes but I feel the class is ready to move on." He said with an incalculable undertone to his words. His eyes seemed to hold mine for an immeasurable moment, as though he were trying to figure out a riddle of some sort.

"Great, see you later. Let's go, Bella!" Alice chirped, tugging me away.

I shook my head to clear the haze that had swelled up during that stare.

"Are you okay?" Alice asked as we traipsed out into the car park—well, I traipsed, she practically glided whenever she walked.

"Forgive me for saying so, but your brother is so good looking, it's unfair." I sighed.

Alice laughed. "Gross. Gross. Gross. I really do not see the allure. He's so bland."

I shot her an incredulous look. "Yeah, and you look like a hippo."

Alice grinned.

"How are you getting home?" I asked when we reached my truck.

"I feel like taking a long walk." Alice said.

"I could drop you off if you want?" I said, looking fearfully at the heavy grey clouds.

Alice smiled. "That's really kind of you. But I'll be okay." She pulled her dark hood up for proof.

"If you're sure?" I said uncertainly.

"Yes, I'll be fine. See you tomorrow!" Alice blew me a dramatic kiss and walked off towards the exit.

I hopped into my truck and started the engine, cranking up my heater as fast as I could. I shivered in the warming truck for a while before I drove off.

A glint of silver caught my eye. I looked left and saw Mr Cullen's Volvo sliding out of his spot. His eyes flashed towards me.

We caught eyes. Mr Cullen's blank face lifted into a small smile.

I smiled back.

And he was gone.

He was definitely not a century old but he was a hundred and one percent beautiful—

AND MY ENGLISH TEACHER.

I sighed and slid out into the lot, wondering why Mr Cullen couldn't have been a few years younger.

After loafing around my room for a couple of hours, I decided to get planning on my _Dracula _essay. Mom and Phil had gotten me a small laptop as a going away present. It was nothing too snazzy but it saved me from the horror of having to work on Charlie's old computer/ my laptop's granddad. I plopped down at my desk and switched the machine on.

I wasn't really sure what I wanted to write about so I went to my trusty friend Google for inspiration.

I trawled through movie reviews and actor profiles for a while, aware that I wasn't really studying—it was the thought that counted.

Just before I was about to give up—after ten minutes of mindless browsing—I clicked on an old legend website.

_Dracula in Romania _

The site was filled with information on origin myths, places to visit and pictures of pale, garish looking vampires.

Hmm… Origins. That could be a good essay: how much of Stoker's book was influence by legendary tales?

I keyed in a new search.

'The origin of Vampires'

Vampires used to be bloated, disfigured and ugly, even hairy. But in the eighteenth century, the portrayals shifted with the pale, middle-class figure taking over the literary imagination…

Different societies had different ideas about them: undead lovers returning for their beloved; a bat bite; an unbaptised soul; a curse from a wicked sorceress… the theories were endless.

Maybe I could do my essay on why the shift in presentation changed. I could link it to political changes in Europe…

I began writing down the differences in physical features between different folklores.

Ancient features:

Ugly

Brutish

Undead

Bloated

Bloody

Dark

Sharp teeth

Rotten skin

Mischievous

Demons

Evil spirits possessing dead bodies

18th century + features:

Pale

Brute strength

Sophisticated

Intelligent

Succubus + incubus types

From middle-class or aristocratic background

Dwell in gothic settings/ haunted mansions or castles etc. isolation/mystery

Emergence of fangs began from hereon

I wondered if Forks had any Vampire myths to share.

Before I could see the results of my new search, I heard the front door open.

"Bells?" Charlie called.

"Shoot!" I realised I'd forgotten to make dinner.

I quickly shut my laptop down and hurried out of my room. "Hi, dad," I called, running down the stairs.

"Whoa, where's the fire?" He asked as I rushed into the living room.

"I was doing homework, I forgot to get started on dinner. Sorry!" I stormed into the kitchen.

Charlie laughed, following after me. "We can order pizza, it's no big deal."

I rolled my eyes. "Dad, you had pizza yesterday. You need to watch your diet."

"Hey now, I'm as healthy as a horse." Charlie said indignantly.

I looked at him incredulously. "Dinner won't be long. I'll make a chicken salad."

"Pizza would probably arrive sooner," he muttered, shrugging out of his officer jacket. "I'm gonna go take a shower, get cleaned up."

My eyes swept over his frame. He seemed clean enough. "Why?"

"We were out in the woods today, hiking around looking for some stray wolf or bear. Never found it."

"Why were the police looking for a wild animal?" I asked, confused.

"You didn't hear?" Charlie looked at me in surprise.

"Hear what?"

"Doctor Cullen and his wife found a hiker mauled pretty bad in the woods this morning. They were hiking too. The guy's torn up pretty bad but with Doctor Cullen's magic, he seems to be on the mend." The revere in Charlie's voice for Doctor Cullen was surprising. I'd never heard him speak so highly of someone before—besides my mom.

"That's horrible!" I said. "I hope you don't get caught either." Worry began to flood my insides. "Maybe you should call in some rangers or something, people trained to deal with wild animals."

"I'm as tough as old boots, Bells." Charlie waved my suggestion away, reddening slightly. "No need to worry about your old man." He traipsed off out of the room.

I shuddered, turning to the fridge for ingredients. Forks seemed so boringly normal: an animal attack was so out of the blue. My eyes flitted to the encroaching woods on our back lawn underneath the darkening sky. Another shiver ran down my spine. Who knew what else was out there?

I pulled the blinds down, shielding my eyes from the blackening sky and hulking trees. Charlie's news and all the vampire myths I'd been reading were not a good combination for my overactive imagination.

Needless to say, I did not return to my _Dracula _homework that night. I'd do it during the daytime. I was too spooked out to do anything but read _Harry Potter. _

The next day at school, Mike kept well away from me during homeroom. I couldn't help but be a little pleased. Silence was golden.

When the bell rang, I headed off to English. I was so tempted to skip class and sit in my truck and do work. It was so hard to focus when Mr Cullen's deep, velvety voice was filling up the room, or when he walked by and his aftershave—some kind of honey and lilac—wafted up my nose and made me forget my train of thought. Ugh. The Principal should have made him wear a space suit so we could actually focus.

I got to his classroom and took my seat. Mr Cullen was fixedly going through some papers at his desk while everyone filed in.

I got my things out and looked back up, waiting for him to start.

"Morning, everyone." Mr Cullen said, getting up from his desk. He looked everywhere but at me as he began talking about _Wuthering Heights. _

I took to my books instead and began expanding on my ideas from last night. It was so strange that the descriptions of vampires had shifted in the eighteenth century. Why were they pale and strangely good looking all of a sudden? I looked at my own pale, translucent skin and stared at my veins for a while. I was such a hard worker.

My eyes flitted towards Mr Cullen who was explaining something to a guy called Eric on my far left. The contrast between the two closely aligned males suddenly struck me as so weird. Sure, Mr Cullen was drop dead gorgeous-different. But something about being next to Eric, whose own skin was pale, his eyes and hair dark, dressed in jeans and a black shirt—made Mr Cullen seem so impossible. He was too perfect; too finely featured: his face was chiselled the right shape, his skin flawless—no hint of any spots or blemishes—, his lips the perfect blend of pink and red; even his bronze hair seemed perfectly disarrayed.

Perfect.

Impossible.

Inhumanly perfect.

Inhumanly…

I looked back at my list. I stewed for a while, thinking, wondering, imagining…

Maybe vampires were a representation of the impossible hopes pinned on human beings? Maybe vampires were the perfect middle-class man gone wrong, the reality of imperfection in the extreme? Maybe?

I was clutching at straws. God, this essay was going to be terrible. I was missing something major here. I needed to do more research!

"Miss Swan, everything all right?"

My head snapped up and my heart almost stopped. Mr Cullen stood a foot away, towering over me. His face was blank of emotion, not even the trace of his usual smile.

"Yes." I managed.

He nodded and walked back up to his desk.

Miss Swan? Since when did he get so formal?

I dropped my gaze back to my papers but I couldn't shake the image of his sombre face from my head.

When class ended, Mr Cullen paid no attention to any of us leaving, staring intently at his computer instead.

For all Mr Cullen's coldness, his sister seemed to make up for it with extra friendliness. We got an itinerary together for our Homecoming day trip and even invited Angela Weber who had come and joined us at the table.

And that was pretty much it for the rest of the week. I went to all my classes, Mr Cullen would ask me once if I needed any help, I'd say no and that was that. Angela, Alice and I hung out at lunch pretty much every day and even had some of Angela's friends—Ben Cheney, Tyler Devon and Leila Ali—join us on off days. I noticed how nobody seemed to sit too close to Alice, like they were afraid of her for some reason. Mike stayed absolutely clear. The floor always seemed more interesting whenever I was near.

But the end of my boring week was given a happy end on Friday night when Charlie told me we were going to Jacob's house for lunch tomorrow.


	8. Tracing Vampires and Fish Fry

The drive to Jacob's house was nerve-wracking. For some reason, I couldn't stop my stomach from spewing a million and one butterflies every time I thought about seeing Jacob. I wondered if he gave welcome hugs.

We drove down to La Push in Charlie's police cruiser which went a lot faster than my truck. The radio played as we rode so there wasn't much room or need for conversation. I wasn't sure I'd be able to speak coherently at this point anyway. I was still trying to make sense of my emotions.

I hadn't been to Billy Black's place in maybe over a decade. The houses began to grow farther and farther between as the coastline encroached. I wondered if we were close yet; we'd been driving for over twenty minutes.

After another long ten, we finally began to slow down as we took a turn into a dirty road. A one-story, red-wood house loomed into view. Tall evergreen trees surrounded the area, enclosing around the house. As we stepped out of the car, a cold gust of air blew over us. My hurried footsteps were justified.

Before we reached the door, it swung open to reveal a grinning Jacob.

"Hey, guys!" he beamed, looking between Charlie and I.

A burst of warmth spread through me.

"Hi," we chorused back.

"Come on in," he said, stepping aside.

I followed Charlie into their house, wiping my boots on the welcome mat as he did.

"Charlie, Bella!" Billy called warmly as we entered their living room.

Charlie flopped down onto Billy's sofa, already tuned into the pre-game rally stuff happening on the TV.

"Come and sit, Bella," Billy said, gesturing to the armchair beside him.

I followed his direction and sat down on the navy chair, sinking down into the soft cushion. Jacob had disappeared, though given the clinking and light banging from beyond, I assumed he was in the kitchen. A guy who knew how to cook: tick.

I looked around their living room as the smell of fried fish wafted down the hallway. It was a cute space, blue mint walls dotted with family photographs: Jacob's late mother Maya, his sisters' wedding pictures; Jacob's baby photos…

"How are you doing, Bella?" Billy asked.

I pulled my eyes away from the photos. "Great," I said brightly, "thanks for having us over."

Billy grinned. "I'm sorry, I know you're not a fan of the games. Hey Jake!" He called over his shoulder suddenly.

Jacob's head appeared around the doorframe. "Yeah?"

"Why don't you show Bella the beach after we eat? She'll get bored to death watching the game."

Jacob looked at me and smiled. "Sure, food's pretty much ready. Just a sec," he disappeared.

A minute later, after I'd been scrutinising the black carpet, Jacob reappeared with a tray of steaming potato wedges and fish fry. He lay it down on the table and went back to get dishes.

"Let me help," I said and sprang up after him.

"Naw, it's okay." He said but let me come into the small white kitchen after him. "Here, thanks," he said sheepishly, handing me a stack of plates and cutlery. He picked up glasses and soda.

We headed back to the living room and laid the cutlery down. Charlie got a plate and started serving me, to which I rolled my eyes at, but I let him have his fatherly moment. I sat back on the chair with my plate of food, watching the guys pile it on their plates. Jacob came and sat on the arm of Billy's seat, comfortably close to me.

"How's the food?" Jacob asked.

"It's great," I said honestly.

Jacob grinned. "You're just saying that, aren't you?"

"No really, it's good!" I promised. "You cook a _lot_ better than Charlie does."

"Hey, I heard that!" Charlie grumbled, shooting me a fond, sour look.

Jacob laughed. "I didn't know Charlie could cook. I just thought he knew how to dial the pizza place."

Billy and I laughed as Charlie glowered. "All right, enough commentary on my cooking abilities."

We all ate in silence for a few minutes, the echo of laughter still lingering around our faces.

"So, how's your car going?" I asked Jacob.

"I still need a few more pieces but I'm hoping to get that sorted by the end of the week." Jacob seemed hopeful. "I can't wait, it's gonna be so great! You should come and check it out when it's finished."

I smiled. "I look forward to it."

After we were done eating, Jacob and I headed off to the beach. He talked easily as we walked, mostly about his car. I wasn't a huge car person but it was nice listening to him speak: his voice wasn't deep, it was somewhere in-between high and low, kind of throaty, kind of hot. Out against the pale skies and sand, his bronze skin was a beautiful contrast. Idly, I wondered if his tied black hair was longer than mine…

"What are you thinking about?" Jacob asked suddenly.

I snapped out of my reverie. Not how gorgeous you are, that's for sure. "Nothing," I said quickly. "It's so beautiful out here." I looked out to the grey ocean disappearing further and further out until it melted into the light sky.

"Yeah, it is," Jacob said, smiling at me. "Have you gotten used to the cold yet?"

I groaned. "No. I'm surprised I don't have to defrost myself every morning. I can't wait to see Renee and get some Vitamin D back in my body."

Jacob grinned. "I don't know how you lived in Arizona all those years and still never caught a tan."

"Yeah," I said sourly, "you and me both."

"Still, at least you fit right in with all the pale-faces at Forks." Jacob chuckled.

"Pale-faces?" I repeated.

"Yeah, it's what we call you guys on the Reservation."

"Who came up with it?" I asked, genuinely interested.

"It's been around for centuries, since the Quileute's first came into contact with Americans."

"Really? You guys must have so much history." I looked around us, marvelling at how many footsteps the ocean had washed away; how many souls had walked here and lived here over time.

"Yeah," Jacob looked pleased. "Come, let's sit down." He said, gesturing to a stray log a short walk away.

"You know we've got some pretty scary legends." Jacob said.

"Oo, like what?" I asked as we sat down on the cold log. I bit my complaint back.

"Well, you know we're supposedly descended from wolves' right?" he said, sheepishly grinning.

"Wolves?" I repeated, confused. "You mean like actual _wolves_?"

Jacob chuckled. "Yeah. A wanderer transformed us into people."

"Wow that is some serious magic."

He laughed. "Yeah, or some serious story telling. I don't know. But that's how the legend goes and so our ancestors made a living here on La Push, mostly from the sea and they defended the land. It wasn't until a few centuries ago, my great-great-great granddad or maybe great-great-great-great… wait, how many generations would be in between now and the seventeen hundreds?" Jacob asked, puzzled.

I counted on my fingers. "Maybe like four to six?"

Jacob laughed at my hands. "Yeah, so that many. Anyway, one day, a strange creature showed up. It was paler than the usual pale-faces," he waggled his eyebrows at me, "had super-strength and speed and was feasting on the blood of the villagers."

A shiver that had nothing to do with the cold ran down my spine.

"The tribe's warriors tried to kill it but nothing would work—"

"What was it?" I asked, my voice unusually high-pitched.

Jacob looked at me with a mischievous glint in his eye. "We call them the Cold Ones."

"The Cold Ones?"

Jacob nodded. "If you touched them, it was like holding ice. And they had eyes as black as night or red as fire. No souls. No heart. They were the undead come back to feast on the living."

"I didn't know we had this sort of stuff in our history." I replied, shuddering again.

Jacob suddenly laughed. "You seem spooked out. Am I that good a storyteller?"

"I don't know why you're not writing books, to be honest." I said dryly.

"Come on, let's get back to the house." Jacob said, standing up. "The tide's picking up and I don't want you get pneumonia out here."

I followed suit. We walked quickly back the way we'd come, the frosty air blowing fiercely around us.

"Hey, what were they really?" I asked. "The Cold Ones, I mean?"

"I'm not supposed to say." Jacob smiled wickedly. "And I've kind of given away a lot of tribe secrets already."

"Hey, I can keep some more." I said, stepping a little closer towards him.

The skin of Jacob's cheeks turned slightly red. He blinked rapidly. "Uh… well…"

"Come on," I wheedled.

"I'll tell you when you come and see my finished car." He bargained.

"Oh, come on!"

Jacob pretended to zip his mouth and throw away the key.

I sighed dramatically and started asking about his sisters instead. He wanted to see me again after today and that was enough to keep my curiosity at bay. For now.

Charlie and I left around six. Jacob and I shared another farewell hug. It was a quick one, but just as warm and heart stuttering as the last.

"See you soon," he said in my ear.

"Bye, Jacob," I said though it was the last thing I wanted to say.

We parted and I hurried to Charlie's car, avoiding Jacob's gaze lest my warm cheeks gave me away.

"Ready?" Charlie asked, starting the car.

"Uh huh,"

Billy and Jacob waved us away.

We were silent on the way home as I pondered over the story Jacob had told me. The towering, sky-high trees zoomed past us, mixing with the thickening navy sky. Could it be possible for a world of magic to exist? Or were all those old stories just misplaced superstitions born out of scientific ignorance? Was there more to the world than what graced the naked eye?

When we got in, I found myself rushing into my room. I switched my laptop on and searched 'The Cold Ones' on Google. Jacob's answers were too far away to wait for.

My search results brought up the answers I knew I'd find. So Vampires had graced the shores of Washington. Their first sighting was dated around the early seventeen hundreds. Well, I'll be damned.

I threw myself into more research and noted the differences in the Quileute vampire.

Pale skin

Cold

Super strength and speed

Immortal

Can't be staked

Only killed by dissembling the body and burning remains

Werewolves are their natural enemy, equipped to kill them

Changing eye colour- from black to red

Beautiful

Lives on human blood

I compared my notes. The physical representation on vampires had undoubtedly shifted around the seventeenth century. The only thing that had remained the same over the ages was the diet of human blood.

I spewed out an essay on the links between vampirism and class conflict over the weekend, wondering why it still felt like I was missing something here.


	9. Unintended

As I got ready for school on Monday morning, I was taken steadily over by a sense of dread. Turning in essays was always a nightmare but this one felt different somehow. Maybe because I was the only one writing this paper and it was my first written assignment for my favourite subject and my handsome teacher… I kind of wished I hadn't missed out on those extra lessons but I still hadn't forgotten his weird behaviour and Alice's play 'reason'. I wasn't sure why but my gut said there was more to the situation than I was being told.

The school had a tangible buzz around it as I arrived. The Homecoming dance was this Friday evening and it showed on the mooning faces of guys and girls staring across the lot, new couples holding hands across campus and the depressed rejectionist look the Mike Newtons of the school were sporting. I kind of felt bad but I mostly didn't.

In Homeroom however, I was in for another nasty shock.

"Hey, Bella," Eric said, throwing a candy bar at my shoulder.

I turned around, kind of pissed. "What?"

"Wanna go to the dance with me?" he asked, a cheeky grin on his face.

"Did you seriously just throw a candy bar at me and then ask me to the dance?" I scoffed. I couldn't help it. Did he think I could be bought with a candy bar? That it was okay to throw something at a girl and still expect a date in return?

Eric's grin fell. "Uh…"

The group of guys around him, including Mike, laughed and began jeering at him.

"I'm not going to the dance anyway." I said and turned around. I groaned inwardly. I felt bad: Eric was now the butt of his friend's jokes. Still, he shouldn't have thrown something at me to get my attention. Scratch that, he shouldn't have asked me in the first place. If a guy really liked me, he would somehow magically know that I hated dancing and had the worst pair of left feet in the world.

I hurried out of Homeroom when the bell rang and went to English. I wasn't sure whether or not I was meant to hand in my paper at the start of class or at the end. I wasn't sure I even wanted to hand it in anymore: it was 99% crap.

As I walked into Mr Cullen's class, my eyes invariably went to his desk where he sat. He wore a dark navy shirt today and grey suit trousers. Sigh. Hot. Teacher. Must stop.

Mr Cullen looked up.

"Ah, Miss Swan, have you got that essay?" he asked, smiling amiably.

"Yes, I do." I replied, pulling my satchel around and unzipping it. I pulled out my paper quickly.

"Excellent, thank you." Mr Cullen held out a pale hand.

I stepped closer and handed him my paper, our eyes locking. I quickly averted my gaze and turned off towards my seat. My heartbeat was drumming like crazy. My insides were spinning with fear. Mr Cullen always had impossibly light, gold eyes. But today, they weren't gold. They were closer to a crystal brown, some weird mix of honey and gold. How was that even possible? He must be wearing contacts, right?

"Settle down everyone," Mr Cullen called in his tempting voice.

Silence fell.

"So today we will be starting with Mary Shelley's novel. Has everybody read the first chapter?" He looked around expectantly.

Everybody raised their hands. I think some of the girls wanted to raise two.

"Great. Thoughts?"

I stayed quiet and observed Mr Cullen for the entire lesson. His eyes never drifted me once, no eye contact or anything. It was like he was purposely not looking at me. God, I was so self-absorbed.

When class ended, he paid no attention to us all leaving again aside from generically saying goodbye to us all.

I kept telling myself that this was how teachers were _meant _to behave. But I couldn't swallow it. Ever since I'd stumbled in on him and Alice 'rehearsing', things had been weird.

At lunch, I decided I'd try and get some answers from Alice.

"How's it going?" she sang as she gracefully sat opposite me.

"Great," I said with heavy cheer.

Alice rolled her eyes—I started. They were darker. Just like Edward's.

"What's wrong?" she asked, surveying the shock on my face.

I tried to rearrange my features into a smile. "Nothing. I just… are you wearing contacts? Y-your eyes are different."

Alice laughed. "Yeah, I am."

I relaxed. "Oh, cool. I was just… Mr Cullen's eyes seemed darker today as well."

Alice looked surprised. "Bella, have you been staring into my brother's eyes?"

"No!" I protested.

"So, how was your weekend?"

My train of thought shifted instantly. "We went to Jacob's house for lunch on Saturday."

"Tell me everything!" Alice squealed.

I spent the rest of the hour telling Alice about our conversation and walk. She seemed really interested in the 'Cold Ones' story too. We dissected his body movement and his invitation to hang out again. He was either being your average friendly Joe or that blush was a sign of possibly better things to come. I guess it was too early to know if there was anything between us yet. I was unashamedly holding out on a hope of there being something there. Jacob was so much fun to be around. Maybe it was because I'd known him since we were young but I already felt so attached to him. Gah. This was not healthy.

* * *

><p><strong>Edward's POV <strong>

"So, we have a problem." I said as Alice got into the car.

"Just drive." Alice sighed.

I drove out of the parking lot, refusing to look in the direction of Bella's grumbling truck. The usual heads and thoughts turned in our direction as we sped past the end of day rush. I was too tensed to make eye contact and embarrass the onlookers for staring.

"So, what are we going to do about Bella Swan?" I asked, looking at my sister.

Alice looked back at me glumly. "We should just leave. She's noticing too much."

"You shouldn't have become friends with her." I said tersely.

"You shouldn't have given her extra lessons!" Alice retorted, her face darkening.

I looked away from her, staring out to the blurring landscape around us. The houses began to peter out into the greenery as we neared our house.

"And don't act like you're not happy she's been gazing into your eyes, either." Alice's voice was cutting.

"Fine. I'm sorry." I said shortly. "It's not your fault."

"It is fine," she sighed again. "I wanted to drop out anyway. I should have just gone to college with Jasper."

"I love this house," I said quietly as we turned onto our road. I sped down the length of a mile and stopped smoothly before our house. I took in the three storey building, its glass walls and wooden panes; the endless sky-high trees that kept us shielded from view. This was my favourite home of all the ones we had. It was so light and open: honest.

"We'll come back." Alice said. "We always do."

"What's going on?" Esme asked as soon as we stepped into the house. Our uncanny hearing abilities could be a disadvantage sometimes—mostly when you did not want your parents to hear your thoughts.

"One of the students is starting to notice Edward and me." Alice informed Esme. "We're going to have to leave soon."

"So soon?" Esme said, distress colouring her soft face.

"Better safe than sorry, right?" I said unhappily.

"Well, I can say I'm dangerously ill so you'll be home-schooling me?" Alice offered.

"That would be useful," Esme said, lightening a little. "I've got so many projects still going on here. It'd be a shame to have to leave them for another century." Esme was a renovation specialist: she found old, abandoned sites and fixed them up for resale. She had great eyes for designing.

"Suits me. High school is so boring without Jasper." Alice said grumpily. She checked her wristwatch. "Who should be home any minute…?"

Right on cue, Jasper's Mercedes sped to a stop before the house. He was by Alice's side in a second.

"Afternoon all," Jasper said, gathering Alice into his arms.

Jasper, my adopted brother, was tall and leonine with a cloud of blonde curls on his head that starkly contrasted Alice's spiky black ensemble. They were complete opposites in truth: he was more stoic and militant, Alice was more carefree and jubilant. Still, opposites attract and all that.

"What about you then, Edward?" Esme said.

"I'll say I got offered a job at a college. Let's finish this week off?" I asked Alice.

She nodded, still wrapped around Jasper. "Sure."

"Why are you both leaving the school?" Jasper asked, looking between us with his tawny eyes.

"Bella's getting too close. She's started to notice our eyes changing colour."

"Ah." Jasper said. "Why don't we enrol somewhere else then? College? Or go travelling? I'm getting tired of this daytime charade."

"Travelling sounds good!" Alice said enthusiastically. "We haven't been to Malaysia yet…" Jasper and Alice disappeared upstairs to their bedroom.

_Are you all right?_ Esme asked, putting a hand on my arm.

I looked into her dark brown eyes—she didn't need to feed as often as we did- and sighed.

Esme took my hand and tugged me away. We ran off outside, rushing through the surrounding forest until we reached the great river. This was the place we came whenever we needed privacy.

"So?" Esme asked, sitting down on a large boulder rock.

I shrugged and sat down opposite her. "This constant toing and froing is wearing me down." The waters crashed out onto the rocks as if to illustrate my point.

"I take it you mean more than just the travelling," Esme said, watching me shrewdly.

"I don't even know myself, sometimes. I just feel like there's something missing, like I'm constantly searching and turning up empty-handed wherever we go."

Esme thoughts skimmed through the years, musing over the way my father, Carlisle, had tried to pair me with Rosalie and failed (thankfully neither of us had felt inclined toward one another). She tried to comb through the opportunities I'd had with women and came up scarce.

"I don't think it's the lack of a girlfriend, mom," I laughed.

Esme raised her eyebrows at me. "You don't have to be ashamed of being lonely, Edward. A hundred years is a long time to be celibate."

"Not when you're immortal," I smiled angelically.

"Oh, Edward," Esme chuckled, sighing. Her caramel hair blew around her heart-shaped face in the cold wind. "One day, the right person will come crashing into your life and sweep you away. One day, soon."

I rolled my eyes halfway to heaven.

"I can feel a change in the air," she said, closing her eyes and leaning back into the wind. "Call it mother's intuition but you're already changing. Something's coming."

Right on cue, droplets of rain began to fall.

Esme's eyes flew open. We stared at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter.

"Race you home!" I yelled and sprinted off.

I saw Esme shake her head in her mind as she sprang after me. Sometimes (a lot of the time) it was really a blessing not having a beating heart or having to breathe. Running for ages without getting a stitch or out of breath was one of my favourite things about being a vampire.

When we got home, I went straight up to my room to write my resignation letter on my laptop. It didn't take me longer than a minute: I'd written so many resignations and applications over the century. I probably could have done a course on it.

As I printed out the letter, I shook my head at myself. It had been stupid to enrol as a teacher at the school. I'd drawn too much attention to myself. But how was I to know Bella Swan would come along and start noticing things? Most humans were too afraid to ask those questions. Most humans were too afraid to be alone with us, full stop. I'd brought this on myself.

I went back to my sofa and took out the work I needed to mark. On the top of my pile was Bella's essay. My stomach swooped unnecessarily.

_A changing face: the difference of Stoker's vampires to ancient vampire myths _

Oh dear.

I read through Bella's essay and gave her an A. I read through it again and slapped myself on the forehead.

Bella's main argument was that vampires had gone from ugly demons to beautiful aristocrats in the seventeenth century because the emergence of the gothic genre had facilitated it. Middle-class problems were represented through the supernatural: the vampire was a metaphor for a resistance to and representation of bourgeois values... I couldn't help but laugh and groan simultaneously. She had even ascribed cultural influences like a sighting in Washington during the eighteen hundreds to the vampire's changing face. It had become more human over the years, the human's ugly doppelganger.

Oh, Bella.

There was no choice now. I had to leave.

She knew about the 'Cold Ones'. She knew about the differences in description. That's why she'd been so concerned with our eyes today.

"Bella," her name fell from my lips in a horrified whisper.

Alice was suddenly knocking at my door. _What happened? _She demanded, striding in.

I held out Bella's essay to her.

Alice took the papers and read through in a few seconds. Her mouth fell open. "How on earth did she find out about the Quileute legend?"

"I wish I could find out." I muttered.

"What's going on?" Esme and Jasper appeared suddenly at the door. They took one look at me and Alice and hurried in. they read through the essay.

"Oh, dear." Esme said worriedly. "Do we need to leave?"

"That'll make her even more suspicious though, won't it?" I countered.

"We can say Carlisle found a new job he couldn't turn down?" Esme offered.

"I agree with Edward," Jasper said. "If the family disappears, it's going to seem strange. Even Alice and Edward disappearing at the same time will raise eyebrows."

"Why don't I leave first then?" Alice suggested. "I'll stop going from now and play the sick card. Edward can leave at the end of the week and say he's just taking time off for his family. Then we just won't come back."

"That sounds reasonable." I said, taking the essay back.

"Next time, we enrol in the same year." Alice said to me. "Then I won't have to make friends with any humans."

"Agreed." I said grimly. "I'm going for a walk." I went to my balcony door and opened the glass. I ignored my family's concern and jumped off the ledge, running off into the evening.

I wasn't sure where I was going. I didn't really care. I just had to keep moving, had to keep hearing the crunch of the forest floor beneath my shoes as I sped effortlessly through the trees. Small animals darted out of my way as they heard me coming; they had a better sense of preservation than humans. They were lucky I was not in the mood for eating. None of them would have stood a chance.

I stopped a few miles away from the Quileute border. I had half a mind to run down there and see who had opened their mouth to Bella but this was not time for a fight.

"Hey, mom,"

I froze.

"Yeah, school was okay. Yes, mom, I had lunch…"

I edged closer to the voice pouring out of the white house I could see through the trees. Very soon, I stood on the edge of Bella's back lawn, hidden behind a great oak.

I could see through the kitchen blinds: Bella stood with her back to the window, a pale green phone to her ear. Her auburn hair fell over the side of her face, hiding her from me.

I shut off my airways: the smell of her was much stronger here. Her warm scent, freesia and berries and blood still left a scorching fire down my throat. I gripped the tree as venom threatened to spill into my mouth; as my muscles coiled to spring.

I could do it.

I could go in there right now and take her for my own.

And this time there would be no witnesses.

I lurched forward and brought myself to her back door in an instant. I crouched down, listening to the steady pulse of her heartbeat.

"Mom, have you sent off your health insurance forms?" Bella asked, worry colouring her voice. "I left most of it filled out. It should be in the box labelled 'Important' I made for you. Yes… mhhm… okay, well make sure. And don't forget, you have your interview _next_ Tuesday. No, mom, not the sixteenth, the sixth. Okay, write it down…"

Bella Swan, the carer. My tensed muscles loosened.

I hadn't killed a human being in so long. But her blood; her heart; the sound of that muscle pumping wet, delicious blood through her veins, right beneath her soft, translucent skin… if I could just take a bite, just a few drops—I wouldn't have to kill her, I could leave her near a hospital and they could get a blood transfusion for her—

"I know, I miss you too, mom. I can't wait to see you at Christmas. Sometimes… it's just so lonely here. I love you. Maybe you could come visit here sometime?"

Guilt broke out through my body, crashing over me like a wave.

Bella Swan was just a girl. She had a mother. And a father who'd just got her back. How much of a monster was I willing to become because of this one human girl?

I poised my hands on her back door. One push and I could break through the entire thing. Just one push.

I inhaled her glorious scent, sending a fire blazing through my body. My head span.

I needed her.

I wanted her.

I'd never wanted anybody so much in my life.

_Her frail body shook in my hands as she pled, begged and wept for mercy. I tore into her throat, my teeth hooked around her jugular as her sensuous blood poured down my throat. I crushed her to me, hearing bones snap as I gorged on her life. The beast inside me roared with triumph._

_Bella Swan's heartbeat stopped. I drank and drank until there was nothing left but a limp pile of bones and wide brown eyes that stared at me in horror. _

_I saw myself through her eyes: blood spilling around my red mouth, stained like the brightest sin against my white face. _

_Oh god the horror in her eyes the fear dead dead dead she was dead Bella was dead I'd killed her her heart was no more the smell was gone all that lay mangled bones she was dead she was gone nothing but bones those eyes those eyes those innocent eyes staring at me begging me why her why did I kill her why her why her why me why her she was dead she was gone she would never breathe again I'd never hear her heartbeat I'd never hear her heart stutter when I came near I'd never see her blush I'd never see her smile I'd never feel the warmth of her small body I'd never hear her heart again_


	10. Tempests and Trucks

_A/N: Hey guys, so sorry for the lateness but I'm in my final semester of university and the workload is something else.  
>Hope you enjoy this chapter!<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Edward's POV<strong>

"Bella," I gasped.

All sounds inside the house suddenly stopped. "Mom, hang on, I think I heard something outside." Bella said cautiously.

I took my hands off the door and ran back into the woods. The door opened just as I slid behind the great oak, gripping onto it for internal support.

I could hear the panic in her heartbeat as she looked around. The smell of her blew my way. My throat tightened as venom filled my mouth but my body relaxed.

She was alive.

Bella went back inside, quickly shutting the door and locking it after her. Her heartbeats were still a bit frantic as she went back to the phone.

"There was nothing outside. It was probably just the wind or a cat or something…"

Relieved, I hurried away from the call of my desires to Forks Hospital. I needed to speak with my father. I needed to get away from her glorious smell.

Running away from Bella's house felt like I was swimming up from the bottom of deep waters. With distance between us, I could see the light beyond the waters. But I was still struggling to swim; still trying to stay afloat; still trying to figure out how this could have happened to me in the first place.

_Edward?_ My father's mental voice caught me off guard.

I skidded to a stop by the edge of the trees. I'd arrived at the hospital.

_What are you doing here?_ He asked as he walked through the hallway to a patient. He'd heard me running through the woods.

"I think…" I whispered, "I…"

I saw Carlisle stop through his mind. _Son, is everything all right? You sound off._

"I don't know," I admitted.

_I just have to do some check-ups. Go wait in my office._

"Thank you," I murmured.

He began worrying away as he went to his patients, wondering what was going on with me. I walked out of the trees and walked carefully up the drive. I had to force myself to move slowly as other people came into my sight. I was so nervous. I felt like I'd be getting ready to vomit if I were a human being. I didn't know I could even have these kinds of feelings. I'd never been so unsure like this, not in decades.

I strode through the hospital without hesitation. I knew my way around my father's workplace. I let myself into his office and flicked the light on. I paced the floor as I waited for him to return.

After what felt like five years but what was really five minutes, my father's footsteps turned in my direction. A few moments later, the door opened and closed swiftly as Carlisle stepped in.

"Edward, what's going on?" My father's amber eyes were worried. _I've never seen him look like this before._

I saw myself in his mind and froze in surprise. My eyes were bright with feeling; my hair on end and a pain I'd never seen coloured my entire face. Was this what love was meant to make you look like? A train wreck?

"Love." I whispered, stunned. "I just. Did I just. Did I… say…"

"Edward, what's going on?" Carlisle demanded worriedly, seizing me by the shoulders. He peered into my face. "Talk to me."

I stared back at him wordlessly. The minutes seemed to tick by forever as Carlisle held my arms. _Love? Why did he say love? Did he love—did he love the kill? Did he hurt her? Did he hurt Bella?_

The sound of her name broke my reverie. I jolted out of Carlisle's hold.

"Edward?" Carlisle pressed.

I sank into the chair closest. Somehow, I thought sitting down would change things.

"Edward, please, you're worrying me to death here." Carlisle urged.

I looked up at him, seeing the wonder in my eyes reflected back at me. "Carlisle." I croaked. "It's her."

_Did something happen to her?_ He demanded, fear and horror washing his mind.

"No, no," I said quickly. "She's fine. I didn't do anything to her."

Carlisle instantly relaxed. "But then what is it?"

"I thought it was just my lust for her blood that made her so appealing," I said. "And initially it was. Her blood is the most enticing thing I've ever come across."

"But?" Carlisle prodded, thoroughly confused.

"But… she… I…"

_I've never seen him struggle for words like this before, _Carlisle mused.

I grimaced. "This is so strange to me. I don't know what to say."

Carlisle stared at me, _really _stared at me. Alarm bells seemed to go off in his head as his eyes widened. _Edward?! Is this possible? Has it finally happened? Are you in love with Bella?_

I froze as jubilation spread across Carlisle's face. he laughed aloud, clapping his hands together. "I never foresaw this! I can't believe it!"

I just stared at him.

Carlisle continued to laugh. "This a peculiar turn of events."

"That's one word for it," I managed to say.

Carlisle couldn't stop smiling. "Have you spoken to her?"

I stared at him in horror. "I'm her English teacher, remember?"

Carlisle's face fell. "Ah."

"And a century older," I added.

"Ahh." He looked pained.

I hung my head in my hands.

_Well, at least you're frozen at seventeen. Age is just a number, and all,_ Carlisle tried for humour.

I didn't look up.

"Come now, Edward, this isn't a bad thing." Carlisle said quietly. "Bella's a year away from graduating and then—"

"And then she'll go on to college, and then she'll get a job and get married and have kids and grandkids and get sick and get better and then she'll die like a normal human being!" I was on my feet, my voice dangerously high.

Carlisle stared at me with wide eyes. "But your feelings?"

"Are just as much a threat to her life as my thirst for her blood."

"It doesn't have to be that way," he said quietly.

"It is the only way." I said absolutely. "I apologise for interrupting you at work. I just needed to talk my thoughts out. See you at home."

"Edward, come on," Carlisle sighed. "Don't be like this. Let's talk about this some more."

"There's nothing more to say." I said finally and strode past him to leave.

Carlisle's hand suddenly gripped my arm, fixing me in place. His mind was suddenly full of things I couldn't bear to see.

"No." I growled, wrestling my arm from his steel grip.

"It's an option." He said softly. "Perhaps she might even choose—"

"There's one great flaw here, Carlisle," I said, still facing the door. "She does not and will not feel the same."

"Edward," Carlisle began.

But I swivelled and shot to the window, lifting it open and soaring into the woods too fast to be seen. I ignored his calls and the vibrating phone in my pocket as I ran away from what used to be my home.

There was no way I could stay here any longer, not now I knew why Bella had captivated my interest so much. To stay near her, to involve myself with her anymore would only add to the raging ache tearing through my chest. Apparently I wasn't above the drama of teenage heartbreak after all.

I could not bear the thought of facing my family so I spent the entire night running around Washington. I went deeper into the mountains and hunted on mountain lions, enjoying the savage wrestling that allowed me to beat out some of my anger. My clothes were absolutely destroyed by the time dawn came.

I grudgingly went home, praying that my family would give me the courtesy I denied them and leave me well alone. They seemed to get the message when I streaked right into my room, changed, showered and left with the car. Alice could pretend she got dropped off by the Loch Ness monster for all I cared.

I sat in the car park at Forks High School for the longest time, watching students slowly trickle in. Today would be the beginning of our exit charade: Alice acting sick and Esme rushing in to take her home. And soon, too soon, it would be me.

Rain began to pour in buckets, as the English would say. Thunder crashed around the sky and lightning streaked angry bolts that only half resembled the torment thrashing around inside me. Forks was the perfect setting for the depressed: there was no shortage of storms here.

The rain steadily grew worse as the winds picked up. Students began to come in faster and thicker, running into the school as fast as their human legs could carry them.

I heard the rumble of her truck long before she actually entered the parking lot. My stomach tightened with nerves as I watched her drive at two miles an hour into a parking space. Her hair was tied back, showing her worried heart-shaped face in full view. Bella bit her pink lip as she adjusted her wheels, clearly worried by the weather.

As if that was her biggest problem in this town.

I let my window down a little as she got lightly out of her truck.

The rush of her scent was slow to come, dampened by the rain. Droplets drenched her pale face, making her skin glisten with diamonds no human eye would ever see. She was mouth-watering in every sense of the phrase.

Suddenly, Bella looked across the lot. I froze as our eyes locked on to each other's.

And then several things happened at once.

Somebody ran from their car towards the school, forgetting to look over their shoulder for oncoming cars.

A blue truck screeched and skidded, trying not to run the student over.

My phone began to ring.

Screams broke into the air as the student tried to run out of the way.

More screams broke from the driver who skidded on the wet surface of the road.

And Bella, Bella stood there, frozen in shock as the car that had tried desperately not to hit the student came spinning right at her.

I didn't think.

I just ran.

I was by her side in less than a heartbeat, grabbing her in my arms as the truck screeched towards us.

I heard Bella gasp as I unwrapped an arm from her and shoved it against the tail of the truck swinging at us.

The impact sent the truck off its balance, throwing it onto the side. I swore.

Hell broke loose.

People ran for the overthrown truck and tried to get out the frantic person inside of it.

I looked down at Bella.

She was staring at me with utter shock in her brown eyes.

"Bella, are you all right?" I asked worriedly.

"I think… I hit my head." she said numbly.

"Are you bleeding?" I asked, though I already knew the answer. She was mercifully unscathed. I checked the back of her head anyway, my fingers prickling as they brushed beneath her soft hair.

"Bella, are you all right?" I asked worriedly.

"I think… I hit my head." she said numbly.

"Are you bleeding?" I asked, though I already knew the answer. She was mercifully unscathed. I checked the back of her head anyway, my fingers prickling as they brushed beneath her soft hair. "I think there's a bump forming," I said as I felt the tender scalp throbbing beneath my fingers.

Bella reached for the back of her head, wincing.

I moved my hand away quickly as her warm hand brushed by mine, sending an arrow of shivers down my arm.

"Can you stand?" I asked, aware she was still half in my arms. The feel of her body against mine was like an open flame on my skin. It felt so terribly good to be this close to her.

"Y-yeah, think so," she mumbled.

I helped her to her feet; her heart was thudding painfully loud and fast; her entire body was shaking hard.

"Mr Cullen!" Jessica Stanley gasped.

I dropped my hands from Bella and looked up: the crowd of students was spilling towards us in discovery.

"Bella!" Jessica's eyes bugged open.

"Have you guys called an ambulance?" I demanded.

Jessica and several voices quickly affirmed they had.

"Did you guys get hit?" Jessica asked, staring at Bella in shock.

"I pulled Miss Swan out of the way." I said firmly.

Mercifully, other teachers arrived on the scene and began ushering all the students inside. Tyler Lockwood, the driver of the van, had been—thankfully—unhurt, owed to his seatbelt. They'd pulled him out of the truck already.

I looked back at Bella who had turned deathly pale and was still shaking.

"We need to get you a seat," I said, putting my hand on her back lightly. "Can you walk?"

Bella merely looked back at me, fear and confusion and shock all mixed on her face. "You were across the lot."

I froze. "What?"

"How did you get to me so fast?"

"What?" was all I could say.

"You were across the lot." Bella said more quickly, a sense of desperation in her voice. "I could've sworn I saw you in your car—you were nowhere near me!"

"Bella, you hit your head pretty hard." I said gently, trying for compassion. "You're confused. I was near you when the van hit; I'd been walking towards the school."

"No," she shook her head, dazed. "You were over there—but then you were here?" she looked up at me with a doubt so strong I felt ashamed of myself.

"Bella, that's not possible." I said, keeping my voice kind. "Come on, let's get you seated while the ambulance comes. I think you need to rest."

"Did you get hurt?" Mr Varner demanded, rushing over to us. "Edward, Bella?"

The sound of our names together made my stomach twist. "I'm fine." I said. "Bella's a bit shaken up."

"Come on, Miss Swan." Mr Varner took her from my hand, propping her up as she walked shakily.

A sense of petty anger swelled through me as I watched the old man walk Bella away. it should be _me_ helping her.

_Ugh. Look at me, acting like a teenager._

_Edward? _Alice's voice hissed.

I looked to the left and saw Alice sat in our car.

_Get here, now._

I didn't need telling twice. I hurried over to her just as the ambulance sirens wailed towards the school. I cast a look over my shoulder and saw Bella's retreating figure. Just as I turned to look back, I saw her head move a fraction of an inch and kept my gaze.

Bella looked over her shoulder and stared right at me. Her eyes showed no doubt now, only determination.

My insides turned to ice.

Bella looked away.


	11. Piecing the Jigsaw

"What the hell, Edward?" Alice moaned as I got into the car.

"I couldn't let her die!" I shot back.

"I know," she sighed and buried her face in her hands. "We need to leave."

"Yes."

_This is going to look so obvious. _

"Not everybody is as perceptive as Bella,"

"Well, if she didn't know before she definitely knows now. She _saw_ you from across the lot!"

"I am aware," I said through my teeth.

Alice made a frustrated noise as she sifted through visions, trying to figure out what Bella would do next. There was nothing concrete, just wisps of possibilities that could go either way.

"I can't do this anymore." I said morosely, staring out to the lot. The ambulance arrived with its sirens on full blast. I watched as Bella and Tyler were hurried away into the van. She didn't look back at me.

I felt Alice's cool hand grip my shoulder. "I can't imagine how hard this must be for you."

I clasped onto her hand, holding onto her for strength. "We should leave tonight, before Bella gets any more time to ask questions."

"All right. Nobody's going to believe her after she hit her head like that, though."

"It doesn't matter. She knows or is close to knowing that we're not normal. It's not safe for us anymore. We're meant to keep our identity a secret."

"Lest the glorious Volturi chew off our asses," Alice said bitterly.

I grimaced.

The Volturi were the closest thing to a royal family we vampires had. They had established themselves as the global police of our kind, making sure nobody exposed our truth lest it reignited a war between humans and vampires. One of the benefits of modernism was that superstitions had long ceded into the back of people's minds. But we still had to be careful. There were people around the world who still believed in the supernatural.

"Let's go home." Alice said gently.

I nodded and put the car into drive as the ambulance left the lot.

If ever there was a time I needed to hear Bella Swan's thought, this was it. But that would only and always be a dream now. I had to leave.

* * *

><p><strong>Bella's POV<strong>

I pretended to sleep in the ambulance. Tyler wouldn't stop apologising. After five times, it kind of got annoying.

It wasn't his fault. The weather was crazy today.

And so was my English teacher.

I wondered if I really had imagined it. Maybe he had been walking by me. Maybe I'd imagined seeing him across the lot.

There was no way he could've gotten to me so fast. He'd come out of nowhere, slamming us to the floor as the van screeched toward us. My head had hit the ground as he shielded me with his firm body… how had he gotten the van away from us? I remembered his grip slackening, an arm shooting out… Tyler's truck fell on its side… but had… had Mr Cullen really done that? Had he shoved Tyler's truck off its wheels?

There was no way that was possible. No way.

I was dreaming.

Maybe this was all just a weird dream.

I opened my eyes and blinked into the sterile while light of the ambulance. I pinched my hand. The sting of my skin confirmed this was really happening.

But then… how the _hell_ had he gotten to me so fast? How had he stopped the truck from crushing us? That would've taken superhuman strength and Mr Cullen was nowhere close to having the muscle mass capable of accomplishing such a feat.

Ugh. I was insane. There was no way half of that had happened. Forks had officially made me crazy.

I feigned sleep again as we arrived at the hospital and awaited with dread Charlie's arrival.

The Sheriff didn't take that long to arrive, barely five minutes since Tyler and I were admitted.

"Bella!" Charlie burst in through the door.

"Dad," I sighed, "I'm okay."

"Bella, thank God," he stopped before my bed. Charlie's brown eyes were watery. "Are you oaky?" He asked, taking hold of my shoulders. "What happened?"

The warmth of his hands caught me off guard. His watering eyes made a lump in my throat grow. We just about hugged when one of us was leaving the State—and even that was a one-armed thing.

I squeezed Charlie's hands. "I'm fine, dad, I swear. I didn't get hit, I made it out of the way."

"How did you?" Tyler asked suddenly, strapped to the bed beside me.

Charlie looked at him suspiciously. "Were _you_ driving?"

Tyler looked back at him fearfully. "Uh, yeah."

"You can kiss your license goodbye." Charlie growled.

"Dad!" I griped. "Nothing happened—"

"You could have been killed, Bella." Charlie rounded on me. "Do you understand that?"

"Yes," I said calmly. "But I wasn't. I'm fine."

Charlie took a deep breath. "If anything had happened to you, I swear to God,"

"Hey, don't think about it," I said firmly. "What's done is done. We can't change the past."

Charlie shook his head at me in disbelief. "You nearly got killed and you're comforting _me._"

I smiled half-heartedly.

"Let me speak to one of these doctors," Charlie said, turning around to a white coat.

"Bella?" Tyler whispered as Charlie's back was to us.

I turned. "Yeah?"

"How did you get out of the way?" Sincere confusion was all over his face. "I don't know what I hit but I don't remember anything between us."

"Uh, Mr Cullen pulled me out of the way."

Tyler stared back at me blankly. "Mr Cullen? I don't remember… all I saw was you and I was trying to turn the car but I lost control of my wheels…"

"It all happened really fast." I offered.

Tyler nodded and fell back against his pillows. "Yeah. Damn. I'm so sorry, Bella."

"Don't be, it wasn't your fault." I said, turning back as the doors burst open again.

"I heard the Chief's daughter was in town." A handsome, handsome man strode through.

I pinched myself to make sure I was awake because I _had_ to be dreaming.

"Doctor Cullen," Charlie sounded relieved as he shook hands with the beautiful blond doctor. He had the same pale complexion—Cullen! Jeez, my brain was so slow. He was a Cullen. He was their father!

I surveyed him as he approached with a warm smile on his face. His eyes were slightly darker than Alice and Mr Cullen's, some type of brown and black jewel. The beauty gene in their family was insane.

"Hello, Isabella," Doctor Cullen said with a velvet smooth voice much like Edward's.

"Hi," I said almost breathlessly.

"Is she all right?" Charlie asked anxiously.

I looked at Charlie, grateful to have an excuse to look away. "I'm fine, dad."

Carlisle chuckled lightly as he pulled out a small pen-torch from his pocket. "Look here, please." He held up a finger above my eye and shone the light in the other. He switched eyes and then checked the back of my head with his cool fingertips, a welcoming feeling from the heat pulsing on my scalp.

"Your vitals are good and there's some swelling that'll go down with some good rest and an ice pack if the pain is too much." He smiled at me—I forced myself to breathe evenly—and turned to Charlie. "She's going to be fine. You can take her home."

Charlie sighed with relief. "You're sure?"

"Positive." Carlisle clapped him on the back then looked back at me. "Take care, Isabella." His eyes glowed with sincerity and he said my name like he'd known me for a long time. I was startled by the volume of care in his voice.

"Thank you." I replied.

Carlisle smiled and left.

"Hey, I'm really sorry, Bella," Tyler began,

"Let's get you home," Charlie said loudly, putting his arm around me.

Tyler fell silent. I threw him a feeble smile as Charlie led us out of the hospital.

When we were in the police cruiser, Charlie turned to me with a sheepish look on his face. "So, honey…"

I groaned. "Did you tell mom?"

"I thought you were near dead, Bella," he said defensively. "Of course, I called her."

I glared at him. "Dad, she's going to be _freaking_ out!"

"I'm sorry." He said genuinely, shame-faced. "Here," he held out his mobile to me.

There were fifty missed calls and a dozen messages. I threw him another glare as I called my mom back.

"Sorry," Charlie said again as he started the car.

"Charlie?" Renee all but screamed.

I sighed. "No, it's me, mom."

"Bella? Oh, God, Bella? Is that you? Are you okay? What happened? Oh, God, I knew sending you to Forks was a bad idea!"

"Mom, calm down!" I said desperately. "I'm fine!"

"I knew something like this would happen!" she was hysterical. "I want you home, right now? Do you hear me? Pack your things and I'll get myself on the first flight to pick you up—"

"Mom, take a deep breath," I said. "You're not thinking rationally."

"YOU NEARLY GOT KILLED! WHAT IS RATIONAL ABOUT ANYTHING TODAY?"

I tucked the phone against my chest and glared at Charlie. "You are cooking dinner for a month."

Charlie looked fearful.

After the most hysterical conversation I had ever had with my mother, I came home and went straight to bed to lie down for a while. I had to keep Charlie's mobile with me as mom texted about every thirty seconds to see how I was doing.

It was going to be a long week before Renee felt I was all right again.

As much as I'd told her not to come to Forks, there were times you just needed your mom. But Renee needed comforting more than I did and I couldn't handle playing grown up right now. I had to figure out what on earth had happened today.

Conclusion one: I had confused seeing Mr Cullen across the lot from the other times I'd seen him there and in the rush of almost being crushed by the van, I had muddled his being next to me with that memory.

Conclusion two: Mr Cullen had super speed powers that allowed him to get to the lot and grab me.

Problem two: what the hell had stopped Tyler's van from crushing the both of us then?

I tried to think back to that moment of Mr Cullen coming out of nowhere and slamming into me. We'd fallen to the floor. His arms were a cage around me.

The van was screeching. I could see the grey sky and rain drops were everywhere.

Mr Cullen's arms loosened as the van spun closer to us…

His hand shot out.

The van fell back from his touch.

I jolted upright in my bed. I'd gone insane. I had officially lost the plot. There was no way those memories were real.

I checked my forehead: my temperature was okay.

Super strength. Super speed. I knew those words from somewhere… where had I seen them before?

I stared around my room in confusion for a while, racking my brains.

Then it hit me.

I gasped and ran to my bag, shaking out all my books until I yanked out my notes from my essay research.

"I've genuinely gone crazy," I moaned.

"You okay, Bella?" Charlie called, knocking on my door.

"Huh?" I looked up as the door opened.

"What are you doing on the floor? With all your books?" Charlie took in the wreckage around me.

"I… I forgot something. I mean, I left something with Alice," I began talking quickly, "I need to get something from her—"

"Woah, you can't go anywhere!" Charlie said as I made to rise.

"Where's my truck?" I realised.

"It's still at school but I mean you can't leave after what happened to you today! You need to rest!"

"Dad!" I sighed angrily. "I've got a sore head, it's not a cracked skull!"

"Can't you just call her?" Charlie suggested desperately. "Bella, you've been through enough today. Surely you can wait to see Alice until tomorrow."

"Dad, this is really important!"

"And so are you." Charlie said to the spot over my shoulder. "Now," he looked back at me, "I know I may not be winning any awards for parenting but I sure as hell know I can't let you just walk out of here and drive after nearly being hit today! You need to rest for at least a day."

I stared back at him angrily. If my head hadn't been throbbing, I would've stormed past him in true teenage style. But I relented. "Fine, whatever. I'm going to shower and sleep." I grabbed my towel from my bed and stalked past him.

"Come on, don't be like that." Charlie sighed.

"Goodnight, dad." I said resolutely, shutting the bathroom door behind me.

I stripped and climbed into the shower, turning to heat way up. The water pouring over me did something to calm my anger at Charlie calling Renee, at Renee having a seizure over the phone; at Charlie not letting me go out. I knew he was right, I probably shouldn't be out driving after today but I needed answers and I needed them now!

Because either I had truly gone crazy or Mr Cullen was a vampire.

And as much as I hated to even acknowledge it, Mr Cullen being a vampire made more sense than it seemed unlikely.

But if _he_ was a vampire or a Cold One as Jacob had said, that meant… gah. Alice. Doctor Cullen. Their whole family. Each was as impossibly beautiful, oddly pale; they all had varying eye colours I myself had seen change. They were too perfect to be human.

If they were vampires though, creatures known for hunting humans, how were they living amongst us? Doctor Cullen was a _doctor _for crying out loud! Mr Cullen was a teacher! And Alice… she'd become my closest friends. Could they really be monsters?

Suddenly, the conversation I'd overheard between Alice and Edward came rushing back.

"_I'm a hundred and eight years old, Alice…_"

Immortal. Oh, my g… and then Alice's too perfect lie, about it being a play rehearsal and—

God, I couldn't believe I was even having this conversation with myself.

I needed answers. And I needed them fast.

Mr Cullen was going to have a hell of a lot answering to do tomorrow. And he'd prove this was all just a terrible misunderstanding. Because there was no way he was a vampire, right? There was no such thing as the supernatural- I mean nothing really went bump in the night, did it? It was just our imagination running wild with sounds: creaky floorboards, winds and trees...right? Had I hit my head too hard or was I on the cusp of finding out that there was more to life than I had ever thought possible?

I was insane, right?


End file.
